Our New Life
by JessCM09
Summary: Sequel to "A Second Chance". The story continues as Emily and Alex return to DC to begin their new lives together, facing the ups and downs as they get to know each other and learn how to be a family.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey everyone! So here is the beginning to my sequel for "A Second Chance". I've been crazy busy with work but I'm going to work hard to update as often as possible! I hope you guys enjoy this story!**

**-J **

**Chapter 1**

Emily Prentiss was tired; she might even say she was exhausted. Why she had chosen such an early flight when she had spent the past week barely getting any sleep was beyond her. As the plane landed, Emily looked to her right at the 14-year-old brunette who was looking out the window beside her.

"Well here we are," Emily said, pulling Alex from her thoughts. The teen turned to face her birth mother, a sad smile on her face. Alex's eyes were still red from the tears she had spilled as the plane took off from Chicago, there were dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep and she was biting her lip anxiously.

After JJ left the pair on Sunday to return to work, Emily and Alex had continued packing and setting things in order to sell the house and move back to DC. The two had taken advantage of the time together to get to know each other better, and Alex had been doing as well as could be expected of her, but at night things were a different story. Alex's sleep continued to be plagued with nightmares, constantly forcing her to imagine images of her parent's death and reliving the frightful experience of her own capture just over a week ago. The lack of sleep was beginning to ware on the two brunettes, and neither one was really sure how many more sleepless nights they could handle. Emily felt helpless, constantly doing her best to comfort the young girl who was often inconsolable after one of her nightmares, refusing to talk about the things that were haunting her.

When Emily had decided that they would leave Chicago for DC that Friday, she felt guilty taking the teen away from the place that she called home, but the profiler hoped that getting some space between Alex and her childhood home may help with the teen's nightmares, as the house now held so many negative memories.

"You okay?" Emily asked reaching over to give Alex's hand a squeeze.

"Just tired," Alex answered quietly.

"Well we'll be home soon enough and you'll be able to get some sleep," Emily answered, releasing her seatbelt and standing to get their carry-on bags from the overhead compartment.

A few minutes later the pair made their way off the airplane, Emily leading Alex through the airport towards where she knew they needed to pick up their luggage. As Emily steered the exhausted teen through the airport crowds, one hand on the teen's back, Emily noticed a familiar blonde smiling at her standing near the luggage carrel.

"What are you doing here?" Emily asked, happy to see her best friend. "I thought you guys were in New York?"

"We got back late last night," JJ explained giving her friend a hug in greeting. "Hotch thought you could use a ride home so he gave me the day. Hey Alex," JJ greeted taking the small girl in a hug noticing that the teen looked pretty defeated.

"Hi JJ," Alex replied, wrapping her arms around the blonde woman who had become like family in the two weeks that she had known her.

"Our luggage will probably be a few more minutes," Emily explained as JJ reluctantly released Alex from her hug.

"I'm just going to go to the bathroom then," Alex said pointing towards the ladies room just across the way from them.

"Alright," Emily replied, watching as the teen walked away.

"You know I hate to say this, but you two look awful," JJ pointed out when the teen was out of earshot.

"Well we haven't exactly been getting a lot of sleep," Emily explained, running her hand through her hair.

"She's still having nightmares?" JJ asked.

"Every night," Emily replied. "And it seems like they're only getting worse. Add that to the fact that I took her to Rachel's and the cemetery yesterday to say her goodbyes, and I think she's emotionally exhausted…we both are."

"I'm sorry Em," JJ said, wishing she could do more for her friend. "Maybe she needs to talk to someone."

"I know," Emily agreed. "I just didn't want to force anything too early. I'm going to look for someone she can talk to as soon as possible."

"Good," JJ said with a smile. "And in the mean time I'm here to help with whatever you need, starting with getting you two home to get some sleep."

"What would I ever do without you Jennifer Jareau?" Emily asked teasingly.

"Oh you would be completely lost Agent Prentiss. Of that I'm sure."

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"Well this is it," Emily announced, pushing open the front door to her condo, allowing the younger brunette to enter first. "Home sweet home."

Alex, JJ and Emily entered the condo, dropping the bags they were carrying in the entryway.

"It's nice," Alex commented, walking into the kitchen where the open floor plan allowed her to see into the dining and living rooms, straight back to the large windows with the great view of the Capital building.

"And it looks like all your stuff got here," Emily said pointing out the boxes that were currently taking up space in the living room. Emily had arranged for Alex's things to be shipped ahead of them, and Garcia had helped out by letting the movers in earlier in the week.

"Do you want me to start moving these bags upstairs for you Em?" JJ asked from where she was still standing near the doorway.

"No, no. We can get them later, just come on in Jayje," Emily replied, moving to stand beside Alex whose eyes seemed to be taking in every inch of her new home. "Do you want a tour?" She asked the teen.

"Sure," Alex replied.

"Well down here we've got the kitchen, dining room and living room, obviously," Emily explained pointing to each room as she went. "Over here we have my office and there's a bathroom right through here," she said leading Alex through each room and then heading for the stairs, leaving JJ who had made herself comfortable on the couch. Emily led Alex up the stairs towards a door on the left. "This will be your bathroom."

"I get my own bathroom?" The teen asked surprised, looking around at the spacious room she was standing in.

"Well I have my own so yeah I guess this one would be yours," Emily explained, then leaving the room to enter the room across the hall. "I've been using this as a guest room, but this will be your room now," she said, holding the door open for the teen to enter. "We can change the colour, put up some pictures, and get some new bedding …whatever you want."

"It's great," Alex smiled. "Thanks." She said walking around and imagining the things she could do to this room.

"We'll have to get you a new bookshelf too since we couldn't bring yours," the profiler pointed out, watching as the teen explored her new room, a small smile on her face. "My room's at the end of the hall," she then explained, leading the teen to show her the master suite.

"This place is really nice," Alex commented as she looked around Emily's room and master bath.

"I'm glad you like it," Emily replied, following the teen out of the room, both of them heading downstairs where JJ was flipping through television channels.

"So what do you think Alex?" JJ asked from her place on the couch.

"I think I could get used to it," the teen replied with a grin, taking a seat next to the blonde.

"So the team were hoping we could all get together tomorrow night," JJ said handing the television remote to Alex and turning to face Emily who was moving towards the kitchen.

"That sounds good," Emily answered, happy to be able to see the team. "Everyone can come here, I'll just have to get this stuff cleaned up," she said looking around at the boxes and bags strewn around the condo. "And I'll have to get some groceries," she laughed looking into her empty refrigerator.

"Well I can help you get this stuff upstairs and what not," JJ replied. "And we can order pizzas or something tomorrow night. Although you might want to get groceries anyways since you have another mouth to feed now," the blonde teased.

"This is true," Emily said laughing. "We can just go out for dinner today and get some groceries tonight after we get this stuff moved upstairs. That sound okay to you kid?" She asked looking confused when she didn't receive an answer right away.

JJ turned to Alex to find the teen with her head resting on the arm of the couch, fast asleep.

"Well I think we've lost her," JJ pointed out with a quiet laugh, grabbing the blanket off the back of the sofa, and placing it over the teen. "Why don't we let her rest and I'll help you with all this."

"Thanks Jayje," Emily responded with a smile. "You really are the best.

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Later that night, after having dinner with JJ and loading up on groceries Emily and Alex returned to the condo, put on their pajamas and hunkered down in the living room with a DVD, both feeling pretty tired.

After Alex had woken up that afternoon she helped Emily and JJ organize her clothes and a few of her other things, not wanting to unpack too many things since they intended to paint the room as well as redecorate later that week. Emily then treated JJ to dinner in order to thank her for all her help. Since Emily had next to nothing to eat at home grocery shopping had taken a lot longer than she had expected, spending extra time getting to know what Alex liked to eat, trying to stock up on the teen's favourites. After walking around the store for over an hour both brunettes were feeling pretty beat, deciding that they would go home and relax in front of a movie.

As Emily started the movie she looked over at the young brunette who still looked exhausted despite the nap she took that afternoon.

"So the team's coming tomorrow night," Emily began. "You're okay with that right?"

"Of course," Alex replied. "I like them. And I'm really looking forward to meeting Penelope."

"She has text me like 10 times today telling me how happy she is that she gets to meet you tomorrow," Emily said laughing.

"Will it just be the team?" Alex asked.

"Hotch's wife Haley will probably come too," Emily replied. "And I imagine they'll bring the baby."

"Hotch has a baby?"

"Jack. He's just 6 months old."

"Cute…it's kind of hard to picture him with a baby," Alex said biting her lip as she considered it. "I mean he seems pretty serious."

"He kind of is, but he can joke around too," Emily explained. "You'll see," she smiled. "Also I was thinking that we should ask Derek if he'd help paint your room, he loves that kind of thing. We'll have to pick out a colour."

"Can we do purple?" The teen asked.

"Of course hun," Emily replied. "Whatever you want."

The pair then turned their attention to the movie, falling quiet as they curled up and allowed themselves to lose themselves in the story, commenting every now and then about the plot. Two hours later Emily turned off the TV, yawning as she turned to the teen seeing that she was doing the same thing.

"Well I think I'm ready for bed, how about you?"

"Definitely," Alex replied, standing from the couch and following Emily up the stairs after she turned the lights off around her.

"Is there anything you need?" Emily asked as the pair stopped in the hallway between the bathroom and Alex's new bedroom.

"I think I'm okay," Alex replied.

"Okay well if you need anything just come get me," Emily said.

"Okay," Alex said moving into the bathroom to get ready for bed while Emily made her way towards the master suite.

Emily took her time in the bathroom getting herself ready for bed, excited to be able to sleep in her own bed after spending two weeks sleeping in a hotel bed. She turned the light off in the bathroom and made her way towards her king size bed. Just as she was pulling the covers back Emily heard a soft knock at her door. The profiler made her way to the door, pulling it open to find Alex standing there, picking at her nails and looking down at the floor.

"Everything okay?" Emily asked.

"I was just wondering if maybe…maybe I could…" the teen struggled. "I…I don't really want to be alone."

"Come on in," Emily replied putting an arm around the smaller girl and leading her into the room.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey Everyone!**

**Thanks everyone for all the amazing reviews! Everyone has been so great! I really appreciate it!**

**A lot of you are asking about JJ and Emily getting together, and I hope you're all willing to be patient! Though I was unsure at first I think I really want it to happen, it's just a matter of deciding on when and how they could get together (suggestions are welcome). For now I hope you enjoy all the bonding moments that I have planned! **

**Hope you all enjoy this chapter! -J**

**Chapter 2**

Emily woke up with a stretch looking beside her to see Alex still fast asleep, one hand clutching the Yale t-shirt that Emily was wearing. Emily couldn't help but smile at the fact that the teen tended to cling to her in her sleep, happy that she could at least provide some form of comfort for the girl.

Emily had been awoken once throughout the night, confused at first as to what had torn her from her slumber, eventually hearing a soft whimpering coming from beside her. Alex had been crying in her sleep, clearly stuck in a terrible dream. Emily was able to wake the teen who continued to cry, slightly confused as to where she was. Emily offered the teen comforting words, holding Alex as she sobbed until she eventually exhausted herself and fell back to sleep.

Careful not to rouse Alex, Emily slowly moved to check the time on the clock beside her bed, the red numbers glowing 10:30. Emily normally didn't sleep this late, but wasn't surprised considering how little she had been sleeping for the last couple weeks. Not wanting to wake Alex, since the teen needed the sleep, Emily decided to stay put, carefully reaching for her phone so that she could text JJ about plans for the night.

_Did you talk to the team about tonight? _Emily text, knowing the blonde would be awake and had likely already been for a run this morning. This was confirmed a few minutes later when her phone screen lit up with a new message.

_Yep. Everyone's in. Should all be there around 7pm. Rossi is bringing pizza. _Was JJ's reply.

_Sounds good. Feel free to come by earlier if you want, will probably be around most of the day_ Emily typed back.

_I just might do that. Will call you later and let you know :) _Emily received in reply, putting a smile on the brunettes face as she placed her phone back on the nightstand beside her bed.

"Hi," came Alex's quiet voice from beside her, surprising Emily who jumped slightly in the process of putting her phone down. "Sorry," the teen giggled, seeing Emily jump.

"Didn't realize you were awake there," Emily replied. "Sorry if I woke you."

"You didn't," Alex said, releasing Emily's shirt when she realized that she had such a tight grip on it. "Sorry, I didn't mean to trap you here."

"It's no big deal," Emily assured. "I haven't been up for very long anyways." She explained running a hand through Alex's long, dark hair. "The team will be here around 7 tonight, is there anything you wanted to do today?"

"Do you think we could go pick out some paint?" The young brunette asked sounding excited.

"Of course," Emily replied with a smile. "Maybe I can show you around a bit too while we're out."

"Sounds good," Alex replied as she and Emily both got themselves out of bed, ready to get a start to their day.

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"Oh what about this one?" Alex asked holding up a paint chip with a light shade of purple on it.

"I like that," Emily replied from where she was leaning against a shelf. The pair had been standing in front of all the paint chips for the last 20 minutes while Alex went through every shade of purple the store had, contemplating each one and trying to picture it covering the walls of her bedroom.

"But I really like this one too," Alex said picking up a brighter purple that she had picked up several times since they had arrived. "What do you think?"

"I think you should go with your gut," Emily said with a smile, amused by how difficult this choice seemed to be for the teen. "But I do like that one."

"Okay…I think this is the one," Alex decided handing the paint chip to Emily.

"Great choice," Emily said, turning to the woman who worked at the store. "Can I get two cans of this one?" Emily asked as her phone started to ring.

"Prentiss," Emily answered without checking the I.D.

"Hey Em, it's me," came JJ's voice through the speaker. "How's it going?"

"Hey Jayje," Emily greeted, watching as Alex continued to browse through the various paint colours while they waited for their cans to be mixed. "Alex and I are just at the hardware store picking out paint."

"Awesome, and let me guess, she picked purple?" JJ replied with a laugh.

"That she did," Emily laughed. "But trust me when I say there are many shades of purple."

"I bet," JJ replied. "So what are you guys up to when you're done there?"

"We were thinking of taking a walk through the park…enjoy the sunshine. Do you want to meet us?"

"That sounds great! Half an hour?" JJ asked.

"That's perfect, we'll see you in a bit." JJ replied, hanging up and turning to Alex who had several paint chips in her hand. "Please don't tell me you changed your mind."

"No," Alex laughed. "I was just putting these back. Is JJ meeting us at the park?"

"She is," Emily answered. "We'll hang out there and then go get ready to meet the team."

"Sounds good," Alex replied. "Could we paint tomorrow?" She asked excitedly.

"Of course. I'll ask Derek and maybe JJ if they want to help out…and I'm guessing Penelope will want to be involved too. We can make a day of it."

"Awesome," Alex smiled, going over to the counter where the woman was placing their cans of paint.

Emily paid the woman, taking one of the cans while Alex took the other, heading out of the store and towards her car, ready to go meet JJ.

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**"**It's nice here," Alex observed as she walked next to Emily, both brunettes enjoying the afternoon sun.

It was a warm August day, and the beautiful weather had brought many people to the park; families, couples, runners, bikers and the like all taking advantage of the perfect weekend in the city.

"I love it here," Emily shared, watching as a father tossed a baseball back and forth with his young son. "I usually run here every morning. Well when we're not on cases that is."

Alex paused watching as the young boy threw the ball to his father, a sad smile on her face as she picked her nails in thought.

"What's going to happen when you go back to work?" The teen asked nervously.

"I haven't quite figured that out yet," Emily admitted. "But we'll figure something out."

"I'm old enough to stay on my own," Alex pointed out.

"But that's not what you want is it?" Emily asked reaching out to stop the teen from ripping out her fingernails. Emily knew that Alex was wary about being alone right now, and she had no intention of leaving the young teen on her own for several days at a time while she worked, but she had yet to figure out her alternative.

Alex shook her head in answer to Emily's question, meeting the older brunette's eyes, looking worried. "You know during the day it's easy to forget everything," she began. "I mean I think about my parents all the time, but I can forget about what they went through….I can forget about him. But at night…it's like as soon as I close my eyes there he is," she admitted, her eyes glossed over with unshed tears.

"I know sweetie," Emily said running her hand through Alex's long, dark hair. "I know it's hard right now, and I promise you I'm not going to leave you on your own. We will figure something out, even if it means taking a desk job, we'll work it out."

"But the BAU is your dream job," Alex argued, receiving a confused look from Emily who was unsure how Alex knew this. "I heard you talking to JJ last week."

"The BAU may have been my dream job, but I have bigger dreams now," Emily said, squeezing Alex's hand. "I'll give it all up if I have to. I hope you know that."

Alex nodded, unable to speak as she tried to suppress the tears that were trying so desperately to escape.

"Hey Prentiss! Campbell! Over here!" Came a shout from across the park, pulling the two brunettes from the moment they were sharing. The pair looked up to see JJ jogging towards them, a soccer ball being kicked ahead of her.

"Oh no, no, no, no, no," Emily began laughing. "This was some kind of set-up wasn't it? Trying to trick me into playing with you?"

Alex laughed, subtly brushing a tear off her cheek. "Hey JJ," she greeted as the blonde passed the teen the ball.

"Sorry Prentiss but you're outnumbered now," JJ laughed. "You're just going to have to play."

"No. No way, I told you I don't do sports," Emily argued.

"Aw come on Emily. You and me against JJ! Please?" Alex begged looking at the profiler with big brown eyes that she hoped the older woman would be unable to resist.

"Alright fine," Emily relented, putting a smile on both Alex and JJ's faces, making her laugh. "But I wouldn't expect too much out of me kid."

"No worries, we've got this," Alex replied confidently.

"Oh you think so do you?" JJ laughed, taking the ball and taking off towards a large stretch of grass that was free of people. "Think again kiddo!"

Emily laughed as Alex took off after JJ, taking a moment to appreciate the sight of her daughter with a smile on her face.

"Emily! Come on!" Alex called out as she stole the ball from the blonde, who immediately followed the teen, keeping close and looking for her opportunity to take back possession.

Emily shook herself from her daze, jogging towards the pair. The brunette may not know much about soccer, but she was going to enjoy this day.

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"Where's Alex?" Emily asked when JJ came down into the living room wearing a pair of jean shorts and a blue shirt that brought out the colour of her eyes.

"I think she's still changing," JJ explained, taking the beer that Emily offered her and plopping herself down on the couch.

The trio had spent the entire afternoon running around the park, laughing and having a good time. Even Emily had gotten into the soccer game that the three had decided to play, and even though she wasn't the greatest, Alex had declared that Emily wasn't the worst player she had ever seen. JJ had followed the two brunettes back to their condo after leaving the park and all three had needed to clean up before the team arrived. Emily had showered quickly and gotten ready so she could get things ready while JJ and Alex both took their time to get ready.

"Alex the team's going to be here soon," Emily called up the stairs wondering what was taking the teen so long.

"I'll be there in a minute," Alex called back as Emily took a seat on the small sofa across from JJ, a beer of her own in her hand.

"I don't know what's taking her so long," Emily said shaking her head as she took a sip of her beer.

"You better get used to it Em," JJ laughed. "She's a teenager. You do remember what that's like don't you?"

"Ugh, don't remind me," Emily groaned, scrunching up her face in disgust causing the blonde to laugh.

"Ah here she is," JJ announced as she heard footsteps coming down the stairs and Alex came into view. The young brunette was wearing a pair of black capris pants and a flowery top, her long dark hair falling in waves down her back. JJ couldn't help but smile at how much the teen looked like Emily, "you look cute," she told the teen.

"Thanks," Alex smiled. "I couldn't decide on what to wear. Are you sure this is okay?" She asked nervously.

"It's perfect sweetie," Emily replied with a smile. "Now why don't you get yourself a soda and come sit down. Everyone should be here soon."

"Okay," Alex said going over to the fridge and pulling out a cola before taking a seat next to Emily.

"I'm surprised Garcia isn't here yet," JJ stated, knowing how anxious the technical analyst was to meet Emily's daughter since she was the last one to do so. "I expected her to show up like an hour ago."

"She must be coming with Morgan," Emily replied. "He probably won't let her come too early."

"Good point," JJ agreed with a laugh.

Just then there was a knock on the door and a voice called out, yelling "Emily Prentiss you get your butt to the door right now."

"Baby Girl calm down she's coming," came the voice of Derek Morgan from the other side of the door.

"Don't you Baby Girl me Agent Morgan," Garcia replied sternly. "I wanted to come half an hour ago!"

Emily laughed as she made her way towards the door, JJ and Alex following close behind, both also laughing at the interaction on the other side of the door.

"Brace yourself," JJ warned Alex, nudging the teen with her elbow.

Emily opened the door to find Penelope Garcia standing there looking both excited and anxious, Morgan and Reid standing behind her, both shaking their heads at the bubbly blondes antics.

"Prentiss!" Garcia greeted, throwing her arms around the brunette. "I've missed you!"

"I missed you too Garcia," Emily replied with a laugh, returning her crazy friend's hug. "Come on in guys," she told Reid and Morgan from over Garcia's shoulder.

As Garcia released Emily from her hug, she excitedly turned to where JJ was standing with Alex, looking like she was ready to pounce.

"Garcia this is Alex," Emily introduced as the analyst moved closer to the teen. "Alex this is Penelope."

"Oh my goodness you are just so adorable," Garcia practically squealed, pulling Alex into what looked like a bone-crushing hug.

"It's nice to meet you," Alex greeted, hugging the blonde back, and laughing, unsure of how long this hug was going to last.

"Baby Girl are you going to let the kid go?" Morgan asked when it seemed that Garcia wasn't letting go anytime soon, causing her to release the teen.

"Sorry," Garcia smiled. "I'm just so excited!"

"Couldn't tell," JJ said sarcastically, greeting her friend and leading her into the family room.

"Good to see you kid," Morgan greeted Alex, holding out his first for the teen to bump before joining the two blondes on the couch.

"I brought you something," Reid said as he stood in front of Alex, holding a book in his hand. "It's a book of short stories," he explained. "I thought you might enjoy it."

"Oh wow, thank you," Alex said smiling and taking the book from the youngest profiler. Reid then went to join his teammates, sitting on the floor in front of JJ, leaning against the couch.

"You want to help me get drinks?" Emily asked Alex, who looked unsure of where to go. Just as Emily opened up the fridge, there was another knock at the door. "Actually could you get that?" She asked Alex who nodded in reply while Emily called out to ask what everyone wanted to drink.

Alex walked to the door, opening it to find Aaron Hotchner, carrying a baby carrier, a blonde woman standing at his side. "Hi," Alex greeted, sounding shy.

"Hello Alexandra," Hotch said as the teen stepped aside to let the family in. "This is my wife Haley, and this is our son Jack," he explained gesturing to the wide-eyed baby in the seat.

Alex smiled, holding her hand out for Haley to shake. "It's nice to meet you."

"You too," Haley replied, following Hotch further into the condo, bringing a bottle of wine to Emily in the kitchen.

Alex walked quietly into the kitchen, moving to stand next to Emily who was opening a bottle of wine to pour into two glasses.

"Sweetie, can you bring this to Garcia?" Emily asked holding out one of the glasses of wine to Alex.

As Alex walked towards the family room, Haley turned to Emily. "She looks exactly like you Emily," the blonde stated.

"She really does," Emily smiled watching as the teen placed Garcia's wine down on the table since the tech analyst was currently sitting on the floor, unbuckling Jack Hotchner from his seat so she could play with the 6-month-old. "I still can't believe she's here," Emily confessed.

"Well if you ever need anything, you just let us know," Haley replied with a smile, taking the other glass of wine and heading into the other room to sit with her husband.

Emily watched from the kitchen as JJ grabbed Alex and pulled her down onto the couch beside her, the blonde keeping one arm around the teen who seemed to relax next to the media liaison. It made Emily happy to see her friend and her daughter bonding so strongly and she hoped the bond would continue to grow, since JJ was such an important part of her life. Emily was pulled out of her daze when there was another knock at the door, signifying Rossi's arrival with the food.

Emily let Rossi into the condo, taking the pizza boxes from his arms and placing them on the dining room table. She told the older man to help himself to a scotch while she pulled out plates and napkins.

"Alright everyone, help yourselves," she called to the group in the family room. Garcia reluctantly returned baby Jack to his mother, while Hotch went to grab plates for the both of them, the rest of the team following suit.

The team all sat together, eating and chatting, Alex sitting between Emily and JJ, spending most of her time watching and listening to the interactions around her, answering questions when they were asked of her.

"So Derek, how would you feel about spending your Sunday painting a room purple?" Emily asked after swallowing a bite of her pizza.

"I could do that," Morgan replied. "But you know it'll cost you."

"Ya, ya I'll owe you one buddy," Emily replied rolling her eyes.

"Oh, oh I want to help!" Garcia called out from her seat on the floor next to Reid.

"Baby Girl, you don't want to help, you just want to be here," Morgan said gesturing to the condo around him.

"So what! I'm coming!" Garcia replied sticking out her tongue.

"That's fine Garcia," Emily laughed, shaking her head at her friend's antics.

"Are you going to come?" Alex asked turning to JJ beside her.

"Of course!" JJ replied with a smile.

"So how are you liking the city so far Bella?" Rossi asked from where he was sitting across the room.

"It's nice here," Alex replied, picking at her pizza. "We went to the park today, I really liked it there."

"Yeah and we even got Emily to play soccer with us," JJ revealed, laughing at the glare that was being thrown her way from the brunette.

"No way, Princess played soccer?" Morgan asked earning him a slap in the arm from his partner beside him.

"Are you hoping to play soccer in high school?" Hotch asked from his place on the smaller sofa.

"I don't know," Alex replied. "Maybe."

"I think you should," JJ said. "You're really good!"

"Thanks," Alex smiled, busying herself with her food, looking slightly embarrassed.

As the night wore on the team continued to drink and laugh, enjoying the time together. The Hotchners excused themselves around 9:30pm, needing to get Jack home to bed, and Rossi made it until about 10 before he too left. Emily was currently playing chess with Reid, while Morgan and Garcia were playing some video game, Alex and JJ sitting together on the couch watching both games and talking about various things.

"You remind me of my mom," Alex said looking up at the blonde who currently had her arm around her, running her hand through the teen's hair.

"I'll take that as a compliment," JJ replied with a smile, feeling her heart melt at the love she already felt towards the young girl.

"It is," Alex said, letting her head rest on the blonde woman's shoulder.

Emily watched this interaction from across the room, her heart feeling like it might explode, tears prickling at her eyes.

"It's your turn," Reid said, looking up to find Emily staring at JJ and Alex, looking like she might cry. "Are you okay?"

"What?" Emily said, snapping out of her thoughts. "Oh ya, I'm fine," she said, moving one of her pieces quickly, allowing Reid to take his turn.

Emily looked back up across the room, once again watching JJ and Alex. As if sensing Emily's gaze JJ looked up, smiling and giving the brunette a wink. Emily smiled back, suddenly imagining many more family moments like this one, happy to have such amazing people in her life.


	3. Chapter 3

**HELLO!**

**I totally didn't expect to be able to update again so soon but I got very into writing this chapter and it just came together pretty easily, so I really hope you all like it!**

**Thanks everyone for your reviews. I'm overwhelmed by how nice everyone has been! So thanks for being the best readers ever! And thank you everyone who has offered suggestions about how the story should continue! Trust me when I say I am definitely taking your suggestions into consideration! **

**So I hope you enjoy this chapter! -J**

**Chapter 3**

Alex woke the following morning next to Emily, one hand once again holding on to the brunette's shirt. For the first time in 2 weeks the teen had slept without being woken up from a nightmare, unable to even remember her dreams. This was perhaps because they had gotten to bed late last night, at which point Alex was so exhausted she had simply fallen asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

Morgan, Reid and Garcia had stayed until about 1am, when it was finally decided that they should probably leave if they hoped to spend their Sunday painting Alex's room. Since she had come alone, and had a fair amount to drink, it was decided that JJ would stay the night, sleeping in Alex's room, while the teen once again bunked in Emily's room where she felt more comfortable at the moment.

Alex had enjoyed her night with the team, or her new family Emily had described them, and she looked forward to spending even more time with them today. She really liked the team, and she was happy that they had accepted her so easily into their pseudo-family, treating her as if she had been a part of the family all along. While Alex missed her parents, she was enjoying getting to know Emily, and she couldn't help but enjoy looking for the similarities between herself and her birth mother, many of which were very obvious. Emily had accepted Alex back into her life so easily, and the teen was grateful to have the brunette in her life, as she made Alex feel safe, and cared for at a time where she so desperately needed that.

Alex heard a noise coming from downstairs, and was suddenly overwhelmed by the smell of bacon wafting through the condo. Careful not to wake Emily, Alex crawled out of bed, stopping in her bathroom before making her way downstairs where she found JJ cooking breakfast and dancing to the music that was playing softly in the background. Alex watched from her place near the stairs, laughing quietly as the blonde began to sing along, oblivious to the brown eyes watching her.

"Nice moves," Alex laughed, gaining the attention of the blonde woman, who jumped slightly at the sudden noise, laughing when she realized that the teen had been watching her dancing.

"Hey there," JJ greeted with a laugh. "I didn't hear you come down."

"Well you were pretty busy," Alex giggled, taking a seat at the island. "Smells good down here."

"Yes well I thought I'd make you guys breakfast since I was up," JJ explained. "Is Emily still asleep?"

"Yep," Alex replied.

"Well we will just have to save her some then," JJ said, pulling out some plates and beginning to fill them with eggs and bacon. "I hope you like scrambled. I know it's the only way Emily will eat her eggs."

"I love scrambled," Alex smiled, accepting her plate, before going to the fridge to get some juice. "Do you want some?" She asked holding up the jug of orange juice.

"No thanks," JJ replied. "I've got coffee."

Alex returned to her seat at the island next to JJ, immediately picking up a piece of bacon and taking a bite. "Mmmm, thanks for this," she said, picking up her fork to dig into her eggs.

"It's no problem," JJ smiled, forking some eggs into her mouth.

"So how come you're up so early anyways?" Alex asked, noting that it was only 9am and JJ had obviously been up for some time before the teen joined her downstairs.

"I get to work earlier than everyone else so that I can distribute case files and whatnot, so I guess my body's just used to getting up early," JJ explained.

"Did you have a good time last night?" JJ asked a few minutes later.

"Yeah it was fun," Alex responded after swallowing a mouthful of eggs. "I really like everyone."

"Good," JJ smiled. "We must have really worn Emily out though," the blonde laughed, surprised that the brunette was still asleep.

"Yeah well I don't think she has been getting a ton of sleep lately," Alex replied looking slightly embarrassed.

"You know after everything you've been through nightmares are perfectly normal," JJ assured the teen, tucking her hair behind her ear so she could see Alex's face.

"I know…it's just that…when I have one I'm so scared that I can't even be consoled. And even though I know it's not real I can't calm myself down enough….and then neither one of us sleeps," Alex explained, voicing the thoughts she had been struggling with each night.

"You know sometimes after a really bad case I won't be able to sleep," JJ said, hoping she would be able to help the teen feel better about her nightmares. "There was this one time….the case just really got to me and I had a nightmare that was so bad that I just completely panicked. I ended up calling Emily," the blonde remembered. "She drove over to my apartment and stayed with me so I wouldn't be afraid. Everyone has nightmares hun, you just need to give it time…it will get better."

"Emily really came to your place in the middle of the night to stay with you?" Alex asked sounding a little surprised.

"Without hesitation," JJ replied. "That's just how Emily is. So don't feel bad, Emily is probably happy to be able to help you. And don't be ashamed either okay?"

"Okay," the teen smiled feeling slightly better.

"What is that wonderful smell?" Emily's voice suddenly called out, coming down the stairs.

"That would be breakfast," JJ replied, getting up and filling a mug of coffee for the brunette. "We saved you some."

"Mmm thanks," Emily replied placing a kiss on the top of Alex's head before taking the mug of coffee from JJ, who then began dishing food onto a plate for her friend. "How'd you sleep kid?"

"Good," Alex replied. "I was so exhausted I just passed right out."

"Yeah, me too," Emily smiled, taking her plate from JJ and immediately taking a bite of bacon. "Mmmm thanks Jen, this is great."

"Anytime," JJ replied, going to refill her mug with coffee.

Alex watched this interaction with a smile, happy to have both women in her life right now.

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"Are they going to be here soon?" Alex asked Emily, sounding impatient. It was now 12:30pm and Morgan and Garcia were set to arrive any time now, so JJ, Emily and Alex were lounging in the family room while they waited, Alex tapping her foot anxiously, excited to start work on her new room.

"They'll be here soon," Emily replied, amused by the teen's obvious impatience. Desperate to stop the incessant tapping of the teen's food, Emily then leant forward, grabbing Alex around the waist and pulling her further back onto the couch and keeping her arms around her. "You need to relax kid," she said with a laugh.

"Sorry, I'm just excited," Alex replied, relaxing into Emily's embrace, stretching her legs out on the couch.

"Don't worry Garcia text me, they'll be here in like 10 minutes," JJ said, smiling at the sight of the two brunettes cuddled up together.

"So I have a question," Alex said, leaning back as Emily played with her hair. "Are Penelope and Morgan dating?" She asked causing both women to laugh.

"No," Emily replied still laughing. "They flirt a lot, but that's just how they are."

"They're just really good friends," JJ finished.

"Oh…okay," the teen replied sounding a little confused.

"Trust me once you spend more time with Garcia you'll understand," Emily said.

Alex laughed looking forward to getting to know Penelope better, as she did seem like the crazy aunt of the family.

A few minutes there was a knock at the door, at which point Alex bolted out of Emily's arms, immediately grabbing the brunette's arms attempting to pull her up from the couch.

"They're here, we can start! Come on!" Alex called, pushing Emily towards the door to let her teammates in, JJ laughing behind them.

Emily opened the door, moving aside to let Garcia and Morgan in. "Thanks for coming guys," Emily greeted, smiling as Garcia immediately found Alex, pulling the teen into a hug.

"Hello my little sugarplum," the bubbly blonde greeted Alex, causing the petite brunette to laugh.

"Hi Garcia," Alex smiled pulling out of the hug and turning her attention to Morgan. "Hi Derek," she said smiling at the agent.

"Good to see you again princess," Morgan greeted, once again bumping fists with the teen as he had done last night.

"You guys ready to get to work?" JJ asked. "Because someone here is getting a little anxious," she looked pointedly at Alex who stuck her tongue out at the blonde.

"Definitely, let's do this," Morgan answered, following as Alex and Emily led the way upstairs towards what was formerly the guest bedroom.

The group walked into the room where JJ, Alex and Emily had spent the morning moving the furniture to the center of the room and covering it and the carpet with drop cloths, also taking the time to tape around the doors and baseboards like Derek had told them to do the night before.

"Wow, you actually did everything I said," Morgan said sounding surprised as he saw all the work the three females had done to get ready.

"Obviously," Emily replied earning a skeptical look from Alex. "Alex made us," Emily then admitted.

"Good job kid," Morgan said as he moved to open the paint to poor into several trays that Emily had laid out earlier.

"Oooooh I love the colour!" Garcia squealed happily.

"It's definitely purple," Morgan said.

"It'll look great," JJ smiled, seeing how excited Alex looked.

"So I figured Alex and I could take one wall, Garcia and JJ can take another and you could probably handle the other two," Emily explained directing her instructions to Morgan, who she knew would be able to finish his painting faster than the women.

"Sounds good," Morgan agreed, placing a tray of paint in front of each wall so everyone could get to work as Emily handed out paint rollers.

"Do you want to do the honours?" Emily asked Alex gesturing towards the tan coloured wall, wanting to let the teen be the first to colour her walls.

Alex smiled, nodding her head as Derek handed her a paint roller already covered in paint. The teen took the roller, slowly running it over the wall, watching as it left a purple line in it's path.

"Well what do you think?" JJ asked.

"I love it," Alex smiled.

"Alright my turn! Someone get me a roller," Garcia called out, moving to the wall she and JJ would be painting.

"Alright Baby Girl, but just do what JJ does okay?" Morgan said, nervous about the analyst's ability to keep things neat.

"I know how to paint, Derek Morgan," Garcia replied. "You just go over there and mind your own business," she said pushing the man towards his own wall so she could start painting without him watching over her.

Everyone then began painting their respective walls, Morgan starting on the wall closest to where Alex was working, hoping to be able to talk to the teen.

"Emily said you do this a lot," Alex questioned a few minutes later looking over at the muscular man.

"I renovate houses in my spare time," Morgan explained. "It's kind of therapeutic."

"Cool," the teen replied nodding as she continued to paint.

"You know next time you and JJ decide to have a soccer game you should call me up," Morgan told Alex. "Especially if Princess is going to play."

"Never going to happen," Emily interjected.

"We should get the whole team together to play!" Garcia exclaimed excitedly.

"Yeah we should," JJ agreed, knowing that Emily would not want to play in front of the entire team.

"Not a chance," Emily said, glaring at her best friend for agreeing with Morgan and Garcia.

"Oh come on Emster," Garcia said. "You wouldn't play? Not even for young Alex?"

"Yeah, not even for me?" Alex chimed in, laughing at the surprised look on Emily's face.

"Okay, you are officially not allowed to be alone with Garcia," Emily said knowing the blonde would definitely try to use the teenager to help her get Emily to do things she wouldn't normally do.

"Oh I'd like to see you try to keep her from me," Garcia replied, causing the group in the room to laugh.

The five continued to work, chatting and joking around, the room quickly becoming the colour that Alex seemed to love so much. When JJ finished her wall with Garcia a little while later, the technical analyst moved to assist Morgan, while JJ looked over to where Alex and Emily were still painting, nearly finished with their wall. Struck by an idea, the blonde stuck a finger in her tray of paint, moving closer to Alex, a mischievous grin on her face.

"Hey Lex, I think you've got some paint on your nose," JJ said, moving closer still.

"Oh," she said wiping at her face. "Did I get it?" she asked.

"No, you missed, here let me help," JJ replied. "It's right here," she said laughing as she wiped a glob of purple paint across the teen's nose.

Alex's jaw dropped open in shock, looking at the blonde who was giggling, extremely amused with herself.

"I can't believe you just did that," Alex said sounding surprised.

"Well believe it," JJ replied sticking her tongue out as she watched the teen move to her own tray of paint, preparing to get JJ back.

"No, no, no," Emily said stopping her. "Don't make a mess. Behave JJ."

"Yes ma'am," both Alex and JJ answered, laughing at the glare they then received from Emily.

When Emily turned away JJ met Alex's eyes, nodding her head towards Emily's back, gesturing a high-five motion with her hand, hoping the teen would understand. Alex nodded getting the message as she quietly covered her entire hand in purple paint.

"This looks great Emily," Alex said clapping the brunette on the back and biting back a laugh.

"It really does," Emily said looking around and noticing that her teammates were all laughing quietly about something. "Oh no you didn't," Emily said realizing what Alex had done as she attempted to look at her back over her shoulder, able to see just a little bit of the purple handprint that was there.

"Oh I'm going to get you," Emily said, causing the teen to run towards the door, knowing that Emily wouldn't want to make a mess outside the bedroom. Before she could make it out the door however, Morgan grabbed her from behind, easily lifting the small girl and turning her back towards Emily who was now holding a paintbrush covered in paint.

"No, no," Alex yelled struggling to get out of Morgan's grasp. "No JJ made me do it," she said laughing. "JJ help!" She called out as Emily got closer. When she approached, Emily lifted the paintbrush, running it across the young brunette's face, laughing at the scream that left her throat. "JJ!" she called out again.

"Oh JJ's not going to help you now," Emily said, turning towards the blonde. "Because I'm going to get her now!" She said moving quickly towards JJ who had nowhere to run. When Emily reached the blonde, the two struggled, both attempting to push the paintbrush towards the other splattering paint on both women, Emily ultimately winning when she got JJ in the face with the brush.

Morgan and Garcia laughed, Morgan finally releasing Alex who was also laughing along with the teammates.

"Well at least we match," Alex said to JJ, gesturing towards her purple face.

"We definitely need a picture of this," Garcia said, pulling out her phone. "You three get together," she said gesturing to Emily, Alex and JJ.

The three stood together, Alex in the middle, all three with big smiles on their faces as Garcia snapped a picture.

"Well the room looks great," Morgan said looking around. "Could probably use a second coat though. I can come over tomorrow after work and help you with that," he said.

"That'd be great, thanks Derek," Emily said. "What do you think kid?" She asked looking toward Alex.

"I love it," she replied with a smile.

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After they finished painting Emily ordered Chinese food for the group, while JJ and Alex spent 15 minutes scrubbing paint off their faces, Alex eventually going to shower, while JJ simply changed her clothes, managing to get all the paint off her face. They all ate and talked, Alex a lot chattier than she had been the night before, obviously feeling comfortable around Morgan and Garcia.

Since they all had to work the next morning JJ, Garcia and Morgan had left relatively early, Morgan promising he would come by right after work the next day as long as they didn't have to leave on a case.

Emily then went to shower while Alex decided to start to read the book that Spencer had brought her yesterday, choosing to curl up in Emily's bed rather than down in the living room.

When Emily came out of her bathroom twenty minutes later wearing a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, her hair still wet, she couldn't help but smile at the sight of Alex engrossed in her book, chewing her lip as she read, seeming not even to have heard Emily come out of the bathroom.

"Good book?" Emily asked, sitting down next to Alex.

"Yeah, the stories are pretty good," Alex replied, tearing her eyes away from the page. "You'll have to thank Spencer again for me."

"Definitely," Emily agreed with a smile. "So do you want to watch a movie or are you pretty set for the night?"

"A movie sounds good, we should watch that one you wanted me to watch the other night" Alex answered. "Just let me finish this story."

Knowing what the teen was talking about Emily ran downstairs to grab _The Breakfast Club_ DVD that she had suggested Friday night. Making sure to first turn off the downstairs lights, Emily then returned to her room just as Alex was closing her book, sinking down into the bed to get comfortable. Emily threw the DVD into the player and got into the other side of the bed, smiling as Alex subtly moved a little bit closer when Emily got into bed.

"I had a lot of fun today," Alex said as Emily started up the movie.

"Me too," Emily agreed. "I think Garcia and Morgan really love you. And I know JJ does."

"They're pretty great," Alex said with a smile. "And thanks for letting me paint my room. I really like it."

"Of course," Emily replied with a smile, putting an arm around the teen and running her hand through her currently wavy hair. "Now get ready because this movie is a classic," Emily said as they both turned their attention to the screen.

A few minutes into the movie Emily chanced a glance beside her, smiling at the teen whose attention was on the screen, already very into the film. While the pair still had a lot to do this week, and still had a lot to learn about each other, Emily could only hope for many more nights like this one, just her and her daughter.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks to everyone who has been continuing to review! I'm really enjoying writing this story so I'm so glad you guys are enjoying reading it!**

**This chapter isn't as happy as the last one. I kind of felt like I needed to remind myself that Alex only lost her parents like 2 weeks ago, so while she's bonding with Emily she's still grieving and struggling, so I wanted to show that here with this chapter. Also took the opportunity for a little Alex/Morgan bonding time! **

**I hope you like it! – J**

**Chapter 4**

_Alex was walking home from Rachel's house, having just spent a relaxing day by the pool with her best friend, returning home to eat her favourite meal with her parents, a great end to a perfect day. As she walked up the front pathway the teen felt a familiar happiness that always greeted her when she returned to her home, which held so many great memories. When she opened the front door though she immediately knew something was wrong, an eerie silence filling the house._

_"Mom? Dad?" The teen called out. "I'm home! Where are you guys?"_

_When she walked into the family room the teen froze at the sight that greeted her there. Her parents were tied to the dining room chairs, which were placed in the middle of the room facing the teen, looks of panic across both her parents' faces._

_"Oh my god!" Alex called out, attempting to move towards her parents but being stopped by a hand that pulled her back, a sharp object held to her back._

_"Hello Alexandra," came the voice of Jeffery Fields, his breath hot on the back of her neck. "I've come to save you."_

_"No…no…I don't need saving!" The teen replied, her voice shaking, tears filling her eyes. "Please just let them go!"_

_"You have to choose," Fields replied, ignoring the teen's request._

_"Choose?" Alex asked, confused._

_"Yes, choose," Fields replied, turning Alex to face a third chair that the teen had not noticed, where Emily sat tied and gagged just like her parents._

_"No! No! Please! You have to let them go!" Alex yelled, trying to get out of the man's grip._

_"I said choose!"_

_"No! I can't! I won't! Please! Just let them go!" Alex cried, now sobbing uncontrollably. _

_"You have to choose, you can't have them all," Fields said, watching as the teen continued to cry, shaking her head and refusing his request. "If you won't choose then they all die," he then said, his voice eerily calm._

_Suddenly Alex found herself tied to her own chair, facing her parents and Emily, watching as Fields approached the three adults._

_"No! No!" Alex shouted, struggling to get out of her chair as Fields started to lift his knife, approaching her father. "NO! PLEASE! DAD! MOM! EMILY! NO!"_

_"You should have chosen," Fields said, his knife now covered in blood._

_"NO! MOM! DAD! EMILY! PLEASE! EMILY! MOM! PLEASE! NO!"_

"ALEX!" Emily yelled, desperately trying to wake the teen who was now yelling and crying, still trapped in some terrible nightmare.

"Mommy! Please! Please Emily! DAD!" She sobbed, breaking Emily's heart.

"Alex honey, wake up!" Emily said grabbing the teen by her shoulders as she shot up, her eyes wide open, but clearly not recognizing where she was.

"No! No!" Alex yelled, tears streaming down her face, looking around in panic, shaking uncontrollably.

"Alex! Alex look at me honey. Look at me," Emily said still holding onto the teen's shoulders, her eyes finally meeting brown eyes that were clouded by tears. "It's Emily. You're safe."

"Emily?" Alex asked shakily.

"I'm right here," Emily replied rubbing her hand up and down the young girl's arm as she struggled to get her breathing under control.

"He had you. He had all of you." Alex sobbed. "He said I had to choose," she cried throwing her arms around the older woman's neck, tears immediately soaking Emily's shirt.

Though Alex wasn't making complete sense, Emily got the gist of the nightmare, tears filling her own eyes at the teen's distress, rubbing her hand up and down the young girl's back.

"Oh honey," Emily said. "It was just a dream. Just a nightmare. You're safe, he can't hurt you ever again, I promise. It was just a dream," she comforted, desperately wishing she could take away Alex's pain.

Emily had been woken from her sleep by the now familiar cries of the young girl beside her, cries which soon turned to shouts. When she looked at the clock Emily saw that it was only 3am, and she knew that the teen would struggle to sleep the rest of the night, terrified by the nightmare which seemed to have changed drastically, as this was the first time she had called out for Emily in her dream.

"Just try to take a deep breath," Emily instructed, feeling the teen continue to struggle to calm down, her shaking worse than it had ever been before. "You're okay," she soothed, placing a kiss on the top of Alex's head, running her fingers through her mess of dark hair.

"Why won't it stop?" Alex sobbed, refusing to take her face away from Emily's shoulder. "Why won't they stop?"

"Oh honey, they will," Emily said, moving to lay the both of them down, not bothering to turn off the light, keeping her arms wrapped around the smaller brunette. "The dreams will stop, I promise. It's going to be okay."

"I'm scared," Alex admitted, crying harder.

"I know," Emily said, pulling the teen closer. "But I'm right here. You don't need to be scared. I'm right here."

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Emily awoke the next morning surprised to find that no hand gripped her t-shirt, unsure of when she had fallen asleep or how long she had been sleeping. Her eyes still closed, the profiler reached out for Alex, her eyes snapping open when her hand met cold, empty sheets.

It had been about an hour before Alex's tears had completely subsided the night before, the teen never once removing her face from where it was buried in her birth mother's shirt. Emily had done her best to consol the young girl, offering words of comfort and stroking her hair, wishing that there was more that she could do. After she had stopped crying, Alex had lain awake, listening to Emily breathe, neither one saying a word. Emily must have fallen asleep sometime after that, exhaustion taking over.

It worried Emily that Alex was not still in bed, noticing that it was only 8:30, meaning the teen had probably gotten next to no sleep, if any at all. Not hearing any noises throughout the condo, Emily quickly got out of bed, grabbing a sweatshirt before heading for the hallway. Poking her head into Alex's new bedroom, Emily found the room empty, as well as the bathroom.

Starting to feel a bit panicked, Emily headed towards the stairs, desperately praying that the teen had not run off again.

"Alex?" Emily called out halfway down the stairs, receiving silence in return. "Alex?"

Reaching the foot of the stairs Emily was able to breathe a sigh of relief, finding Alex sitting on the couch, wearing her father's sweatshirt, her knees pulled up to her chest, staring off in a daze.

"Alex? Sweetie?" Emily called out, sitting down in front of the teen who still didn't move. "Alex," she said softly, placing a hand on Alex's knee, startling the young girl from her thoughts. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Alex answered quietly, looking up to meet Emily's eyes, her own brown orbs red from crying, dark circles surrounding them.

"Did you sleep at all?" Emily asked, tucking some of the teen's hair behind her ear.

"Not- not really," Alex replied, her voice laced with sadness, obviously trying to keep the tears at bay.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Emily asked.

"It was just a stupid dream," Alex replied, the tears in her eyes betraying her, her body shaking despite the large sweatshirt she was wearing.

"I think it's more than that," Emily said, watching as the teen shook her head, a lone tear running down her cheek. "You said last night that he made you choose?"

"He…he had all of you. You, my mom…my dad," Alex explained, tears now falling freely. "He said I had to choose…but…I…he killed all of you," she finished, a sob escaping her throat.

Her heart breaking, Emily moved closer, opening her arms and pulling the teen towards her.

"You know, that you don't ever have to choose right?" Emily soothed, holding the teen tight. "I care about you so much honey, but I would never try to replace your parents."

"I know," Alex said, resting her head on the older brunette's shoulder, tears continuing to fall. "I…I just miss them."

"I know sweetie," Emily replied, kissing Alex's head. "I know."

The pair sat in silence, Emily stroking Alex's hair, as the teen continued to sniff, completely exhausted from the night's events, her eyes beginning to drift shut.

"I think that you should talk to someone," Emily said, breaking the silence, Alex looking up at her in surprise, tears blurring her vision.

"What?" She asked, sounding panicked. "Like….like a shrink?"

"I found someone in the area, Dr. Sullivan," Emily explained softly, hoping the teen wouldn't try to pull away. "She specializes in grief counseling. I think it might help."

"But…but I don't need…I talk to you," Alex choked out, crying harder now.

"I know, honey, I know," Emily whispered, placing another kiss on the teen's head, subtly brushing away her own tears ,which were beginning to fall. "I just think that you need to talk to someone else. Just for a little while at least. I'm just worried about you."

"O-okay," Alex replied, a sob once again escaping her throat, as tears soaked through Emily's sweater.

Once again wishing there was more she could do, Emily pulled Alex closer, willing herself to keep her own emotions under control, trying desperately to be the rock that her daughter so needed right now.

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Later that day Emily was standing in the kitchen, pulling things out for dinner, the condo filled with silence, a drastic change from the laughter and joking that filled it the day before. Just as she settled on what she was going to cook there was a knock on the door.

Looking through the peephole Emily found Morgan standing on the other side waiting patiently. With all that had happened the night before and that morning Emily had forgotten about Morgan coming over to finish painting.

"Derek, hey," Emily greeted when she opened the door, letting the profiler into the condo.

"Hey Princess," Morgan replied, taking note of the silent condo as he walked in, noticing that Emily looked pretty beat. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, I….I just forgot you were coming," Emily replied, only half lying. "It's been a long day."

"Where's your mini-me?" He asked looking around for the teen.

"She's on the computer in my office," Emily replied pointing towards the closed door. "She's had a pretty rough day."

"Ah, right," Morgan said with an understanding nod.

"Well why don't we head up," Emily said gesturing towards the stairs, figuring she would help Morgan and deal with dinner later, knowing Alex would probably claim she wasn't hungry anyways.

"No, no, I got it," Morgan replied, noticing the things Emily had pulled out for dinner. "You do your thing here, I'll see if Little Princess wants to help."

"I'm not sure that's a good idea," Emily replied, looking once again towards the closed office door.

"Well it's worth a try," Morgan said moving towards the door, knocking lightly before letting himself in.

"Hey kid," Morgan greeted Alex who was sitting at the desk chair, her chin resting on her knees, which were pulled up to her chest.

"Hi Derek," Alex replied, not ever looking up from the blank computer screen that she had been staring at for the better part of an hour.

"I just thought I'd see if you wanted to help me finish up your room," Morgan explained, saddened by the exhaustion he saw written all over the teen's face.

"Oh," Alex replied finally looking up and meeting the kind eyes of the man in front of her. "Yeah sure," she finally answered, getting up and following Morgan out of the office.

When she heard them exiting the office Emily looked up from where she was pouring herself a glass of wine, surprised, but relieved to see Alex following close behind Morgan. Giving Morgan a grateful smile, Emily simply nodded, watching as the pair made their way upstairs, deciding to get started on dinner.

When they reached Alex's room Morgan poured some paint into two trays, leaving one in front of one of the walls for Alex, while he moved to another. The pair began giving the room a second coat of paint, working in silence for a good 15 minutes before Morgan looked over to Alex, deciding that he should at least say something.

"You know I lost my dad when I was about your age," Morgan said, continuing to paint, keeping his eyes on his work. "He was shot right in front of me."

Alex continued to work, not daring to look towards Morgan, knowing she would surely break down again. Just when Derek thought the teen wasn't going to say anything, Alex broke her silence, still looking forward.

"How…how did you get through that?" Alex asked quietly.

"It was tough," Morgan admitted. "I got myself into a bit of trouble, but everyday it got easier."

"Did you ever have nightmares?" Alex asked.

"All the time," Morgan replied honestly. "Sometimes I still do."

"Did you…did you ever talk to anyone about it? Like a professional?" She asked looking at the profiler for the first time.

"No. I didn't," Morgan replied, meeting brown eyes that looked so much like those of his friend. "But maybe I should have. Probably would have helped."

Alex nodded, continuing to paint as she mulled this over. The pair continued to work in silence, Morgan working quicker than the small teen, eventually moving to help her on the last wall.

"You know kid, you're lucky to have Emily," Morgan said when they were finally finished just over an hour later. "I know it's tough right now, but Emily; she'd do anything for you. She just wants what's best for you," he said understanding why the teen was asking about talking to a professional.

"I know," Alex replied quietly. "Thanks Derek…for everything," she said, giving the profiler a small smile.

The pair cleaned up before making their way downstairs where Emily was just finishing up with dinner.

"Smells good down here," Morgan said as they came into the kitchen.

"You're going to stay right?" Emily asked, pulling out plates from one of the cupboards.

"Actually I'll take a rain check if that's okay with you?" Morgan said letting his eyes fall on the small brunette who was lingering near the dining room table.

"Of course," Emily replied in understanding. "Thanks for your help Derek."

"Anytime," Morgan replied with a smile. "I'll see you later kid. See you soon Princess."

"Bye Derek," Alex replied moving towards the kitchen island.

Emily followed Morgan towards the door, thanking him once again, watching him leave before closing and locking the door behind her.

"You hungry?" Emily asked moving into the kitchen.

"Yeah," Alex replied, placing Emily's wine glass onto the dining table, along with a glass for herself. "It looks really good," she said as Emily dished some pasta and chicken onto two plates.

"Could you pull the garlic bread out of the oven for me?" Emily asked as she placed the plates on the table.

Alex took the bread out, placing it in the breadbasket Emily had left out, bringing it to the table where she sat down across from Emily, placing the basket in the middle. The teen then took a big bite of her dinner, suddenly realizing that she was starving, having had refused to eat anything at lunchtime.

"This is great," Alex said, taking another bite.

"Thanks," Emily smiled, getting to work on her own plate. The two ate in silent for a few minutes, both unsure of what to say to the other.

"Emily…about earlier," Alex finally began, disliking the distance that seemed to be separating them since the conversation they had that morning. "What you said…about talking to someone. I think…maybe it would be a good idea," Alex finally spit out, looking down at her plate.

"Are you sure?" Emily asked, feeling like she may have pushed the teen too soon.

"It's worth a try right?" Alex asked.

"Right," Emily replied, both brunettes once again busying themselves with their dinner.

When they finished they both got up, cleaning up the table, and moving to put the dishes into the dishwasher.

"Emily," Alex called out, standing near one of the island stools while Emily started the dishwasher, looking up at the sound of her name. "Thank you."

"For what?" Emily asked slightly confused.

"For being here," Alex replied with a shrug.

Emily moved to the teen, wrapping her arms around the smaller girl.

"Always," Emily replied, placing a kiss on the top of her head. "Always."


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello!**

**Alright, I'm going to be honest, I'm not entirely happy with this chapter, but I felt like it was necessary to set up for future chapters, especially the next one. Hope you're not too bored with this chapter, I promise the next one will be better!**

**Thanks for reading! - J**

**Chapter 5**

The next day was spent catching up on sleep, and taking advantage of a sunny day, walking around Emily's neighbourhood and doing some shopping, both brunettes happy to be out of the house. Emily had made Alex an appointment with Dr. Sullivan for Friday morning, the teen nervous, but agreeing that she would do her best to be open with the doctor.

Emily had also spent a portion of the day getting ready for the next week as Alex needed to start school and she needed to return to work. So Emily had made a call to Lowell Preparatory School, using her last name to get a meeting with the Dean, confident that she would be able to get the teen a spot at the school despite the last minute.

It was now 9am Wednesday morning and the pair of brunettes had to be at the school in an hour to meet the dean, Alex slowly eating a bowl of cereal, looking slightly nervous.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Alex asked for what felt like the millionth time since the day before. "I mean, I just don't know if me and private school are such a good idea."

"Alex this is like the best school in the city," Emily explained once again. "You graduate from Lowell and you'll be able to get into any college you want."

"Yeah, but it's going to be a bunch of rich kids," Alex argued. "I went to public school in Chicago, what's so wrong with that?"

"I just want you to go to a good school," Emily replied. "Plus it won't be all rich kids, some kids will be there on scholarship."

"Great, so they'll be super smart," Alex countered.

"Then you'll fit right in," Emily replied, Alex raising her eyebrow in a very Emily-like way. "What? I've seen your old report cards kid, don't even try to tell me that you're not smart."

"I just don't know about this Emily," Alex said abandoning her cereal and beginning to chew her lip nervously.

"Look just give it a shot okay?" Emily asked placing a hand over one of Alex's. "I promise that if you hate it then I will find you the best public school in there is. Deal?" Emily asked holding out her hand for the teen to shake.

"Okay, deal," Alex replied shaking the profilers hand before going back to her cereal. "So what are we going to do for the rest of the day?" She asked mouth full of cheerios.

"Well I need to talk to Hotch about going back to work next week, so I thought we'd stop by the office," Emily explained.

"Oh," Alex replied, swallowing. "So you're going back next week?"

"Well yeah, but I was going to ask Hotch if I could work from here for a few weeks," Emily explained. "Give us a little more time to get everything figured out."

"Oh….okay," the teen replied with a shrug, finishing up her cereal before running upstairs to change for their meeting.

By 9:50am the pair were standing in front of the large school campus, the white building that housed the school looming over them.

"This place is huge," Alex said, looking all around her. "All this for a high school?"

"Well it's not just a high school," Emily replied chewing her lip. "The school goes from K to 12."

"K to….great, so all these kids will have known each other since kindergarten, and I'm going to be the new freshman," Alex said. "I knew this was a bad idea."

"Hey, hey don't be like that," Emily said as the pair began their walk towards the building. "We're giving it a shot remember?"

"Yeah, yeah," Alex mumbled. "We're giving it a shot," she said with a very fake smile, making Emily laugh.

The pair entered the large building, easily finding the main office where there was a secretary sitting at the front desk.

"Hi, I'm Emily Prentiss," Emily greeted the older woman. "This is my daughter Alexandra. We have an appointment with Dean Hackett."

"I'll let her know you're here," the woman replied. "Just take a seat."

Emily and Alex sat in the waiting area, Alex's knee bouncing nervously as they waited to be let in. A few minutes later the woman returned saying that the dean would see them now, holding open the door as the two brunettes entered the office, where a woman in her forties was sitting behind her desk, standing in greeting as the pair walked in.

"Katherine Hackett, it's nice to meet you," she greeted holding out her hand.

"Emily Prentiss," Emily replied, shaking the woman's hand. "This is Alexandra," she introduced watching as Alex shook the woman's hand.

"Now our registration for the new school year is usually in February, and I wouldn't normally allow a new enrollment this close to the first day," Dean Hackett explained. "However, after reading over Alexandra's records from her previous school I am willing to make an exception."

"We really appreciate that," Emily says with a smile.

"Alexandra's grades are definitely about average," Dean Hackett continued, "and if you needed it financially she would qualify for our scholarship program, though I don't think that's a problem."

"Not at all," Emily replied knowing she could easily afford the school's tuition.

"Now I was reading some comments from your teachers at your last school, and your English teacher says that she had to create many independent study projects for you throughout the year," Dean Hackett said turning her attention to Alex. "Is there a reason why?"

"I read a lot, so I had already read all of the novels we were going to be studying last year," Alex explained. "So the assignments were fairly simple, and I guess she didn't want me to get bored."

"Well then, I guess your English teacher will have to work to find some books you haven't read then," the Dean said, making a note for Alex's file with a smile. "I also have here that you were captain of your Junior High soccer team, and you were a member of the choir?"

"Yes ma'am," Alex replied politely.

"Here at Lowell we do require students to be involved in at least one extracurricular each year," Dean Hackett explained. "Though you will find we do offer many options, and students are always free to create their own clubs if they wish. Soccer starts up in the spring. We also have a fairly large choir, or perhaps you may want to get involved in one of the school's musical, the arts department puts on two a year."

"That could be fun," Alex replied, thinking that maybe this school wouldn't be so bad.

"Alright, well I think with everything here in your file we should be able to set up an appropriate schedule for you. You'll have to come to the office first thing Monday morning to get it," Hackett explained. "I'll make sure we get you into an AP English course, and I will arrange for a student from your homeroom to show you around."

"Oh, thank you," Alex replied with a small smile. "That sounds great."

"Yes, thank you so much," Emily added, grateful to see that Alex didn't look like she was completely against going to the school.

"You're very welcome," Hackett replied. "I will see you Monday morning Alexandra."

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"Can I ask you something?" Alex asked 15 minutes later when the pair were in the car and headed towards the FBI Headquarters.

"Of course," Emily replied glancing at the teen before turning her attention back to the road.

"Are you like rich?" Alex asked straight to the point causing Emily to laugh. "I mean when we were in Chicago having dinner with the team you paid for everyone. And you just got me into that school no problem, and I know the tuition for that place has to be crazy. Plus your condo is like super nice!" She finished while Emily continued to laugh.

"You really don't beat around the bush do you?" Emily joked receiving a glare from the teen. "Honestly? I was a trust fund kid Alex. I told you what my mother does for a living, so we were pretty well off," the profiler explained. "My parents set up some pretty hefty trusts for me, which I was given access to once I finished high school, and then college. I try not to dip into those funds too often; I live comfortably, but I try not to overindulge."

"So is that how you got me into the school?" Alex asked. "Did you give them money?"

"No, but I knew that I could get a meeting with the Dean because of my last name," Emily explained. "Something I don't usually use, but I'm glad I did because you deserve to go to that school."

"Thanks," Alex smiled. "So the team's not away on a case?" She then asked, as they got closer to their destination.

"No, they haven't been called out so they're at the office doing paper work," Emily explained. "JJ said they'll probably be working from here all week unless something pressing comes up."

"Cool, so will JJ be over this weekend then?" The teen asked assuming that the two friends spent most of their free time together.

"Um, I don't know," Emily, answered. "Maybe."

The teen smiled, turning her attention to the window, taking in her surroundings as Emily continued to drive towards her workplace, happy to return after being away for so long. As much as Emily was enjoying spending time with Alex, the profiler was admittedly anxious to get back to work.

When the two brunettes finally arrived at the BAU floor some time later, Emily was greeted with a familiar sight that made her smile, as Derek and Reid were pouring over files at their desks, while Rossi, Hotch and JJ were each in their respective offices, all three of whom could be seen working on files through their blinds.

"Hey, look who it is," Derek called out when he looked up from his file, noticing the duo walking towards him.

"What are you guys doing here?" Reid asked standing from his desk.

"We just went to visit Alex's new school and I needed to talk to Hotch, so I thought we'd stop by," Emily explained.

"What school are you going to?" Reid asked looking to Alex.

"Lowell," Alex replied.

"That's a great school," Reid said sounding excited. "The best in the city by far."

"So I've heard," Alex smiled, glancing at Emily. "Thanks again for the book by the way. I'm really enjoying it."

"Oh that's great," Reid exclaimed. "You know if you're ever looking for something to read I have a rather extensive collection."

"Uh thanks. That would be cool," the teen replied.

"I thought I saw you two on the cameras!" Came Garcia's shouts, her heels clicking quickly towards them as she made her way over to Alex, scooping the teenager into a hug. Alex, who seemed to have gotten used to this greeting from the technical analyst simply laughed, hugging the bubbly blonde back.

"What are you guys doing here?" JJ asked as she came out of her office, having heard Garcia's greeting from her office.

"Just came to see Hotch," Emily explained as she pulled away from Garcia who had pulled her into a tight hug after releasing Alex. "You okay to hang out here while I talk to Hotch?" She asked, turning to Alex.

"Yeah, sure," Alex replied moving towards JJ who immediately put an arm around her.

"So why don't you tell us about this new school of yours," Morgan asked as Emily made her way towards the Unit Chief's office.

Emily knocked on Hotch's door, entering when she heard her boss call out for her to come in.

"Emily, I wasn't expecting to see you around here this week," Hotch greeted as Emily took a place in one of the chairs in front of his desk.

"I just took Alex to her new school, so I figured I'd stop by and talk to you about coming back," Emily explained.

"I told you, you can have as much time as you need," Hotch said, not wanting the profiler to rush back to work.

"I know, but Alex is going to start school next week, and I was thinking that maybe I could come back and work from the office," Emily explained. "I could help Garcia out with things here, until I figure out what I'm going to do about travelling."

"That's fine by me," Hotch agreed. "But you know you can take more time if you want right?"

"I know, but can you honestly see me sitting at home all day alone while Alex is at school?" Emily asked with a smile, knowing that she would go stir-crazy if she didn't get back to work next week.

"Good point," Hotch smiled understandingly. "How's everything going anyways?" He asked, looking out his office window, seeing a smiling Alex talking animatedly with the rest of the team.

"There's good days, and there's bad," Emily replied honestly. "Just trying to take it a day at a time."

"That's all you can do," Hotch smiled. "If you need anything you just let us know."

"Thanks Hotch, I will," Emily said, grateful to have such an amazing boss.

"We will see you Monday morning then Agent Prentiss," he said standing from behind his desk.

"I will see you then sir," Emily replied, smiling as she made her way back to the bullpen. "Well kid, I think we better get out of here so these guys can get back to work," she said, holding out a hand for Alex to take.

"Alright," Alex replied, taking Emily's hand and standing from where she was sitting, keeping Emily's hand in hers as she turned back towards the team.

"Ugh, can't you stay?" Garcia whined. "It has been so boring."

"Sorry Garcia, it's back to work for you," Emily laughed at the pout on her friend's face. "I'll be seeing you guys on Monday though."

"You're coming back?" Morgan asked sounding a little excited.

"Yeah, but I'm going to work from here for a few more weeks," Emily explained. "So I guess I will be keeping you company when the team gets called away Garcia."

"Oh yay!" Garcia squealed, the team laughing at her obvious excitement.

"So I'll see you guys soon then," Emily said as Alex also said her goodbyes, the pair turning towards JJ, still hand-in-hand.

"I'll walk you guys out," JJ said, moving to follow the duo towards the elevators.

"So is the paperwork driving you crazy yet?" Emily asked JJ when they turned away from the team.

"A little, but it's kind of nice getting to go home every night," JJ smiled.

"Do you think you guys will have to leave for a case this weekend?" Alex asked as Emily pushed the button for the elevators.

"I don't think so, but you never know," JJ replied.

"Well you should come over if you don't," Alex said, surprising Emily slightly. "Friday night."

"Sure, that sounds like fun. Em?" JJ replied, wanting to be sure it was okay with her friend.

"Yeah, sure, sounds perfect," she replied with a smile just as the elevator doors opened with a ding.

"I will see you Friday then," JJ said, watching as the pair got into the elevator.

"See you then," Alex replied, giving the blonde a small wave as the doors closed.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello Readers!**

**I actually had a great time writing this chapter and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out so I hope you all like it! Thanks for reading!**

**-J**

**Chapter 6**

Friday morning Alex sat on a slightly uncomfortable couch across from Dr. Sullivan, a woman who looked to be in her late forties, a pad of paper and a pen in her hand, waiting for Alex to talk.

"I don't really know how this is supposed to go," Alex said chewing her lip anxiously, feeling a little awkward.

"Well Emily told me a little about what's happened in the last few weeks, but I think I'd like to hear it from you," Dr. Sullivan responded. "Why don't you start from the beginning?"

"My….my parents were killed….murdered while I was staying at my friend's house, and I found them the next morning," Alex began nervously. "The man who did it, he um, he was killing families who had adopted children, because of what he went through as a kid. I knew him, he was a janitor at the centre where I used to attend a group for adopted kids."

"It must have been hard, knowing him," the doctor observed.

"Honestly it made me mad," Alex confessed. "He kept saying that my family was a lie, that he had to save me from them, but my parents loved me. They were the best parents I could have ever asked for. It wasn't a lie."

"He must have been a very sick man," Dr. Sullivan pointed out.

"He came back after killing my parents and he tried to kill me too," Alex said. "And now anytime I close my eyes I see him there. I've been having really bad nightmares."

"What do you do when you have one of these nightmares?" The older woman asked.

"Well I've been sleeping in Emily's room. I usually wake up screaming or crying and she usually calms me down," Alex explained. "Sometimes it's harder for me to calm down then others, but she stays with me however long it takes."

"And how is it that you came to stay with Emily?" Dr. Sullivan asked, knowing the answer from her conversation with Emily, but wanting to hear it from the teen.

"Emily is my birth mother," Alex replied, picking at her nails. "I had never met her before, but I knew I was adopted. Emily works for the FBI and she was working my parents' case. My parents left me to Emily in their will, that's how I found out who she was. I moved here with her last week."

"It must have been a little confusing for you; meeting your birth mother after losing your parents."

"I…I guess," Alex admitted.

"How has that been going?" The doctor asked.

"Emily's great. I really like her, but…"

"But?" Dr. Sullivan asked when the teen seemed unsure about finishing.

"I…I guess I've just been feeling a little…" Alex's eyes welled up with tears, unsure of how to continue. "The other night, I had another nightmare, but this one was different. In this one Fields…the guy who killed my parents…he had Emily too, and he told me that I had to choose between her and my parents….choose who lived and who died. But- but I couldn't." Alex explained, wiping a tear from her cheek.

"So you're feeling guilty?" Dr. Sullivan asked, receiving a nod in agreement. "You feel guilty for moving on with Emily, because your parents are gone."

"Yeah, I guess," Alex replied. "I mean my parents haven't even been gone that long and I feel like I shouldn't be happy, or laughing, or smiling, but I have been. And I feel like it's too soon. And…and I guess I don't know how to get to know Emily without feeling like I'm just forgetting my parents."

"You know that loving Emily, doesn't mean you love your parents any less," Dr. Sullivan assured the teen. "Alex, I know that all of this is very new, and it's hard, but I'm sure that your parents would want you to be happy. They wouldn't want you to feel guilty, they would want you to find happiness with Emily."

"You know, my mom wrote that same thing in the letter she left me in her will," Alex sniffed. "She told me not to let my love for them prevent me from loving Emily too."

"That's very wise," Dr. Sullivan said. "Listen Alex, I think the best thing that you can do for yourself, is to stop feeling guilty, and I know that's easier said then done. You need to let yourself be happy, because that's what your parents would want."

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"So Dr. Sullivan said you were very open with her this morning," Emily said as she sat down at the kitchen island next to Alex, grilled cheese sandwiches in front of them. "She said she thinks you could benefit from further counseling though."

"Yeah she told me that too," Alex replied taking a bite of her sandwich.

"And what do you think of that?" Emily asked tentatively, hoping that this conversation wouldn't create any barriers between the two brunettes.

"Dr. Sullivan isn't so bad," Alex confessed. "I mean, I guess it would be okay if I kept talking to her. It might help."

"I definitely think it will," Emily agreed, taking a bite of her sandwich, relieved that the teen was willing to get help, hoping that discussing her issues might help with her nightmares.

"Emily," Alex said after swallowing a bite of her sandwich, clearly thinking hard about something as she was biting her lip. "You…you know that I'm happy here with you right?" The teen asked surprising Emily. "I mean…I'm having a hard time. I-I miss my parents…but having you around helps…I mean I like it here….with you."

"I know sweetheart," Emily said reaching out and rubbing the teen's back. "I like having you here too. And like I said before I have no intention of replacing your parents. But I'm always here for you okay?"

"I know," Alex smiled.

"Good!" Emily said returning to her lunch. "Oh I talked to JJ, she's going to come over right after work. She said she'll bring dinner, so I was thinking we should go get some snacks. Chips, ice cream, chocolate, candy, all the works for a serious girls night in."

"That sounds perfect," Alex smiled, finishing up her sandwich.

"Great," Emily said also finishing her lunch, grabbing the plates to put in the dishwasher. "I just need to run upstairs and grab my purse and then we can head out."

"Alright, I'll be here," Alex replied, grabbing the newspaper that was sitting on the counter to browse while she waited for Emily to return. Just as the teen began reading the cover story though, there was a loud knock on the door.

"Alex can you get that?" Emily called from upstairs.

Moving to the door, Alex looked through the peephole, seeing an older brunette woman that she didn't recognize standing on the other side.

"Hi," Alex said opening the door to greet the unknown woman, seeing that she looked oddly familiar.

"Hello," the woman replied giving Alex a slightly confused look. "Who are you?" She then asked.

"I'm Alex," the teen said, unsure of who this woman was and how she should explain her presence here. "Um, are you…did you…who…"

"I'm looking for my daughter," the woman interrupted the stuttering teen, whose eyes widened at the realization that this woman looked familiar because she was Emily's mother.

"Your…ummm….Emily, I think you should come down here," Alex finally called out, unsure of what to say to Elizabeth Prentiss.

"How old are you?" Elizabeth asked, looking at Alex closely, confused as to why this teenager was answering her daughter's door, but feeling like she had seen this young girl before.

"Fourteen," Alex replied, seeing Elizabeth's eyes widen as realization hit her.

"Oh my God," the Ambassador whispered, still staring at the young brunette.

"Alex who was at the…" Emily's voice called out, coming down the stairs. "…Mother," Emily said sounding surprised when she came around the corner, stopping in her tracks as she looked from Alex to her mother and back again.

"Hello Emily," Elizabeth greeted. "I was in the neighbourhood so I thought I'd stop by. Apparently I've missed quite a bit."

"Alex, why don't you wait upstairs," Emily said approaching the teen, who nodded before making her way towards the stairs, pretending to walk up while really standing on the bottom step where she could listen.

"Is she who I think she is?" Elizabeth asked when the teen was out of sight.

"Yes," Emily replied. "Alex is my daughter."

"What is she doing here Emily?" Elizabeth asked, speaking to the profiler the way she used to talk to her as a child, irritating Emily.

"Her parents died mother," Emily said trying to keep her tone steady. "They were murdered and they left her to me in their will."

"And were you ever going to tell me this?" The Ambassador snapped.

"Yes of course," Emily replied. "We've just had a lot going on. I haven't had the chance yet."

"And what exactly am I supposed to tell people Emily?" She then asked sounding irritated.

"I'm not sure why you have to tell anyone anything," Emily snapped back.

"Don't you think people are going to notice you suddenly have a daughter?" The older woman asked, "And God she looks just like you, it's not going to take people long to do the math and figure it all out. All that time your father and I spent trying to keep this quiet when you were pregnant. Honestly Emily what were you…"

"Enough!" Emily yelled, fed up. "Frankly mother I don't care what anybody thinks okay. I don't care if all your political friends know that I had a baby when I was 18. I never did! You're the one that cared. You're the one that forced me to give her up!"

"Emily…" Elizabeth tried to interrupt, once again getting cut off by the now angry profiler.

"No, mother," she said, forcing herself to hold back the angry tears that were prickling at her eyes. "I am not ashamed of Alex. Do you understand? You may have been ashamed to have me as a daughter, but I'm not ashamed of her. So tell your friends whatever you want."

"I just don't think you've thought this through," Elizabeth said, softening her tone.

"There's nothing to think about," Emily said, opening the front door and stepping to the side. "I think you should go."

"Emily…" The Ambassador said as she stood in the threshold.

"You know I thought that if I told you that maybe, just maybe you'd accept her, and get to be a part of her life," Emily said, sounding surprisingly calm. "But of course your reputation means more to you then your family, and you'll miss out on your granddaughter's life, just like you missed out on mine. Goodbye mother," she said, shutting the door, and resting her forehead against it, taking deep breaths to calm herself down.

"So I guess that's grandma huh?" Alex said coming around the corner to see Emily leaning against the front door, turning around at the sound of the teen's voice.

"You heard all that?" Emily asked sounding a bit defeated.

"Yeah, sorry. I was listening on the stairs."

"No I'm sorry. You shouldn't have had to hear that," Emily said shaking her head.

"It's okay," Alex said. "I mean she's the one who's missing out right?"

"Right," Emily replied, giving the teen a small smile.

"So you mentioned snacks earlier?" The teen changed the subject with a sly smile, making Emily laugh.

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"Oh my God," Alex exclaimed, sitting on the couch between Emily and JJ some hours later. "This is the best burger I have ever had," she said taking another bite of the burger in front of her.

"I told you," JJ said with a laugh.

Alex and Emily spent the day preparing for their girl's night with JJ, shopping and chatting, putting the incident with Elizabeth behind them, something which Emily was grateful for. JJ had arrived by 6, take-out bags in hand telling Alex that she was about to experience the best meal that DC had to offer.

"I will never doubt you again," Alex said after swallowing, a content look on her face as she began to dig into her fries.

"Careful Lex, you'll give her a big head," Emily laughed, JJ sticking her tongue out at the brunette in reply.

"So did you pick out some movies for tonight?" JJ asked, changing the subject.

"Yep! I pulled out basically every chick-flick Emily had so we have lots of choices," Alex replied.

"Must have been hard to find the chick-flicks behind all her nerdy films," JJ teased, meeting Emily's eyes over Alex's head, laughing at the glare she received in return.

"Watch it blondie," Emily replied. "I will have you know that I do not have nerdy movies."

"Well I wouldn't say that," Alex argued, laughing at the shocked look on Emily's face.

"Hey! You're supposed to be on my side here," Emily said poking the teen in the side.

"Sorry Emily, but I saw your collection of Star Wars movies, plus all those other sci-fi movies in there," Alex laughed, JJ also breaking out in laughter.

"They turn on you so quickly," Emily said, feigning hurt as she returned to her food, trying not to smile.

The trio finished up their meals before putting in a movie, choosing to watch "50 First Dates", something which JJ was surprised to see Emily owned. The group was happy to simply watch the movie, laughing and chatting throughout, content in each other's company.

"Can we pause it for a minute?" Alex asked about halfway through the movie. "I just have to go to the washroom."

"Sure," JJ said grabbing the remote to press pause, watching as the teen ran towards the guest bath. "She seems to be doing well today," she said turning her attention towards her best friend.

"Yeah, I think things went well with the Doctor this morning," Emily replied.

"And how are things going with you?" JJ asked, able to read her friend enough to know that she had something on her mind.

"My mom came by today and it didn't exactly go well," Emily, explained. "It just got me thinking that's all."

"About what?" The blonde prodded.

"Family I guess," Emily replied. "What would happen to Alex if something were to happen to me," she said picking her nails. "I mean if something did happen…you…you would take her right Jen?"

"Me? Really?" JJ asked, sounding surprised but looking touched.

"You're my best friend. You're the closest family I have," Emily confessed. "I just need to know that she would be taken care of if…"

"Of course, Em. Of course," the blonde assured Emily, pulling her into a hug. "But nothing is going to happen to you okay?" She said pulling away enough to look the brunette in the eyes.

"Okay," Emily smiled, unable to look away from the blue eyes that seemed to be looking right into her.

"Hey does anyone want ice cream?" Alex called, causing the pair to pull apart, but not before the teen noticed the moment she seemed to have interrupted.

"How can you possibly be hungry?" Emily asked sounding surprised.

"I'm a teenager," Alex replied going to the freezer to retrieve the ice cream the two brunettes had purchased earlier. "You two in?"

"Oh we're definitely in," JJ replied standing up and grabbing Emily's hand, dragging her along with her.

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It was decided that JJ would stay the night since the ladies had watched movies until relatively late, all three exhausted by the end of the last movie. JJ once again took Alex's room, while the teen crawled into Emily's bed, hardly able to keep her eyes open.

Emily got into bed a few minutes later, turning off the bedside lamp before snuggling under the covers, assuming the teen was already out beside her. The profiler let her eyes drift shut, sighing contently as she willed sleep to take over.

"Emily?" Alex whispered from beside her, sounding tired but still awake.

"Hmmm?" Emily replied, her eyes still shut.

"Can I ask you something?" The teen asked softly, her eyes open and looking towards the body beside her, too dark to see if the woman was fully awake or not.

"Sure," Emily replied sleepily, eyes closed, but giving her attention to the young brunette.

"Do you have feelings for JJ?"

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**Literally could not resist ending the chapter here! Tune in to see where it goes from here!**


	7. Chapter 7

**I'm pretty sure the reviews from the last chapter were the best yet! You guys are the awesome.**

**Someone asked if Elizabeth Prentiss would make another appearance and I just wanted to let you know that Ambassador Prentiss will definitely be back, I just haven't decided on when yet!**

**I have so many ideas running through my head for this story, so I really hope everyone is enjoying it! I'm definitely having fun writing it!**

**Thanks so much! -J**

**Chapter 7**

_"Do you have feelings for JJ?"_

"What? What do you mean?" Emily asked, her eyes shooting open, suddenly wide-awake.

"I mean, are you like, in love with JJ?" Alex asked straight to the point, deciding it was better than beating around the bush.

"Why- why would you ask that?" Emily replied, sitting up to turn on the lamp, looking over at Alex confused.

"Honestly?" Alex asked, sitting up as well. "Because I thought that you guys were dating, and you were just waiting to tell me."

"What? JJ and I are just friends," Emily exclaimed. "Why would you think we were dating?"

"Oh I don't know, maybe because JJ is like really interested in getting to know me, and she stayed back with you in Chicago after the rest of the team left, and then picked us up at the airport," Alex explained. "You call her Jen or Jennifer when everyone else calls her JJ, yet she doesn't seem to mind. And then there's the way that you look at her."

"How do I look at her?" Emily asked, completely ignoring the rest of Alex's points.

"You look at her the way my parents used to look at each other," Alex replied sincerely, looking Emily straight in the eye. At this the profiler honestly had no idea what to say, feeling baffled and slightly flustered.

"I….JJ is my best friend," Emily finally replied, searching for the right words. "We're really close, but that's all. She's my best friend," she repeated.

"My parents were best friends," Alex pointed out, still unable to believe that JJ and Emily could simply just be friends.

"That's different," Emily argued.

"Why? Because you're both girls and they weren't?" Alex asked.

"No, no it has nothing to do with that," Emily replied, wondering how she ended up in this conversation. "In fact, the fact that JJ is a woman doesn't deter me at all. I mean I haven't been with a man in a very long time," Emily confessed. "I am gay Alex, I just didn't know how to bring it up to tell you. But JJ, she's just my friend. Nothing more."

"Okay," Alex relented, not fully believing the profiler but giving it up for now. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have assumed."

"No, no that's okay. It's fine," Emily said, happy to see an end to this awkward conversation.

"Thanks for telling me though," Alex said. "About you being gay I mean. I think that's great," the teen smiled, squeezing the older brunette's hand.

"Of course," Emily smiled, glad to have been able to be honest with Alex. "We should get some sleep, it's late," she said turning off the light and sinking down in the bed, feeling the teen doing the same beside her.

"For the record though, JJ looks at you the same way you look at her," Alex said, turning over and curling up under the covers. "Goodnight Emily."

"Goodnight Alex," Emily responded quietly, shocked by Alex's observation, suddenly feeling like there was no way she could sleep now.

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Emily woke the next morning to the sound of laughter coming from downstairs. Straining her ears, she could hear the voices of Alex and JJ chatting, probably sitting in the family room. Looking at her alarm clock she groaned, seeing that it was 9am, wishing she could will herself to go back to sleep.

After her conversation with Alex the night before, Emily had been unable to fall asleep, replaying the teen's words over and over again in her head. Emily spent the night trying to figure out what would have led the teenager to believe that she and JJ were dating; going over her actions over the last 3 weeks, wondering if there was anything she did specifically that indicated that she was in love with her best friend. Coming up with nothing, Emily had continued to toss and turn, unable to turn off her mind. Exhaustion must have eventually taken over, as the brunette didn't remember falling asleep, and hadn't heard Alex get out of bed, whenever that was.

Dragging herself out of bed, the profiler made a stop in the washroom before grabbing a sweater and making her way downstairs. Alex and JJ were sprawled out on the couch, sharing a blanket; JJ nursing a cup of coffee, while Alex was eating a bowl of cereal. Both females looked up at the sound of Emily's footsteps, smiling in greeting as Emily rubbed sleepily at her eyes, yawning as she moved automatically towards the kitchen, grabbing a cup of coffee for herself.

"Morning," Emily finally greeted as she made her way back into the family room, nudging Alex to move over so she could snuggle up next to her, still half asleep.

"Morning," Alex replied, laughing as she made room on the couch for her birth mother.

"You're looking very lively this morning Agent Prentiss," JJ laughed as the brunette began playing with her daughter's hair.

"I just couldn't sleep last night," Emily replied, not daring to meet Alex's eyes when the teen turned her head towards her.

"Well I was thinking about maybe going to the park today," JJ said. "Kick the ball around for a bit. What do you think kid?"

"That sounds great," Alex replied with a smile. "Emily?"

"You know, I think I'm going to pass this time," Emily replied, wanting to avoid not only embarrassing herself playing soccer, but also desperate to avoid having to over-think all her actions in regards to JJ. "You two go though. You'll have more fun without me."

"Are you sure?" Alex asked.

"Yes, of course," Emily replied with a smile. "Go with JJ, have fun."

"Alright well I am going to run upstairs and get ready then," JJ explained. "We may have to stop by my place so I can grab my running shoes though."

"Alright, sounds good," Alex replied, lingering on the couch with Emily while she watched JJ run up the stairs. As soon as JJ was out of sight the teen turned towards Emily, concern written all over her face. "Emily, you're not like mad at me about last night are you?" Alex asked, biting her lip anxiously.

"What? No!" Emily replied, reaching out and rubbing the teen's shoulder. "No of course not sweetie, I'm just tired. And I really don't want to embarrass myself playing soccer today."

"Oh…okay," Alex replied. "I am sorry about last night though," she said. "I mean I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable or anything like that."

"Oh no, you didn't," Emily reassured the teen. "Everything's fine. You better go get changed though," she said.

Alex nodded, grabbing Emily's hand and giving it a squeeze before running up the stairs to change so she could leave with JJ.

Emily remained on the couch, watching as Alex ran up the stairs with a smile. It wasn't that the older brunette was really that bothered by the fact that Alex thought she and JJ were dating, because the pair had been spending a lot of time together since Alex arrived. What bothered Emily though and what she couldn't stop thinking about, was the fact that Alex asking her about her relationship with JJ seemed to have put a whole new picture in her head. A picture which consisted of herself, Alex and JJ in a way she had never considered before.

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"Oh man, I haven't run around that much in a while," Alex said lying down on a patch of grass at the park some 2 hours later. JJ and Alex had arrived at the park, kicking around a soccer ball for a while, before deciding to play a game against each other, JJ taking the time to show Alex some moves here and there throughout the game.

"It was fun though," JJ said grabbing her water and handing a bottle to Alex before sitting down beside the teen.

"Definitely," the teen agreed, sitting up to take a swig of her water, still trying to catch her breath. "Thanks for bringing me."

"Anytime," JJ smiled. "It's nice to have someone around who likes to play. I haven't gotten to play like that since I was in high school and me and my brother used to play."

"You have a brother?" Alex asked curiously.

"Yeah, he's older than me," JJ replied, taking another drink of her water. "He lives back home with his wife Sara and his daughter Lily, she's five."

"That's awesome," Alex smiled, happy to learn a little more about JJ.

"Yeah they're great," JJ replied. "I wish I could see them more often than I do though."

"You know Emily's mom came by yesterday," Alex told the blonde, wondering what the media liaison knew about Elizabeth Prentiss.

"I heard about that," JJ said, trying to read Alex's expression.

"Have you met her?"

"I have," JJ replied. "She's pretty intense."

"She wasn't too happy about me being here," Alex revealed, picking at the grass under her fingers. "She kept asking Emily what she was supposed to tell people. Saying that Emily didn't think this through and stuff."

"You know, Ambassador Prentiss is pretty concerned with appearances," JJ explained, not wanting the teen to take the Ambassador's words too personally. "Her job is incredibly important to her, and because of that she forgets about what's really important. You know that Emily doesn't care about any of that right? I mean all she cares about is you."

"I know," Alex said, looking into sky blue eyes. "How long have you known Emily anyways?"

"Ummm just over 2 years," JJ replied, surprised by the change of topic, but going with it.

"Have you guys always been so close?" The teen asked curiously.

"Pretty much," JJ replied, thinking about when she first met the dark haired Agent, smiling at the memory. "We just clicked right away. She's the best friend I've ever had," the blonde confessed with a smile.

Alex smiled, seeing a look in JJ's eyes that always seemed to be there when she talked about her brunette friend; a look that was often mirrored in Emily's eyes as well.

_There's no way these two can just be friends_ Alex thought to herself, wondering how the pair could possibly be so oblivious to their own feelings.

"So do you have a boyfriend?" Alex pried, vowing to find out as much as possible about JJ.

"Uh no, I don't," JJ said shaking her head. "Our job doesn't exactly allow for a lot of free time, and there aren't many people who understand that. Makes it kind of hard to date."

"That must be hard," Alex replied, trying to sound sympathetic.

"It's not so bad," JJ said, shrugging. "I mean I'm sure I'll meet the right person eventually."

"I'm sure you will," Alex agreed with a fake smile, feeling pretty sure that the blonde had already met the right person, but just couldn't see it.

Alex didn't care what Emily said last night; there was more to JJ and Emily's relationship than purely friendship. Since she obviously wasn't going to get anywhere with Emily, and she didn't want to ask JJ about it in case the blonde told Emily; Alex knew exactly who she needed to ask. It was just a matter of figuring out how she was going to do that.

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The rest of the weekend seemed to fly by. Saturday afternoon Emily spent a quiet afternoon at home, deciding to stop thinking about the questions Alex had raised about her relationship with JJ. JJ and Alex had returned home from the park later in the day, tired and hungry, the trio making dinner together and then enjoying a nice meal at home before JJ departed, wanting to spend her night at home with her bathtub. Alex and Emily had spent Saturday night playing video games and relaxing, happy to spend the time together.

Sunday afternoon the two brunettes spent the day preparing for their Mondays; Alex getting her books and uniform ready to go, while Emily ironed her favourite blouse, ready to return to work after a 3 week absence.

The pair had decided to get to bed early Sunday night, knowing they had a big day ahead of them. When they made their way upstairs Emily was surprised to see Alex make her way towards her own room, saying she thought she would sleep in her own room; something she had yet to do since they had moved back to the city.

Emily had bid the teen goodnight, making her way to her room, where she turned the television on low, hoping a mindless TV show would help tire her out so that she could get a good sleep and be ready to go the next day. The profiler drifted off after about an hour, her TV set to turn itself off as she fell into a peaceful slumber.

It was another hour later when Emily was woken up by the sound of her bedroom door opening. Squinting at the light that filled the room from the hall, Emily could make out the silhouette of her teenage daughter standing there, unsure about whether or not she should come into the room. Understanding the hesitation, Emily pulled the covers back beside her; Alex quietly closing the door before making her way over to the bed, snuggling up beside Emily, who quickly covered the teen with the blankets.

"You okay?" Emily whispered, putting an arm around the smaller girl.

"What if no one likes me?" The teen replied quietly, nervous about starting a new school.

"Aw kid, that's impossible," Emily said, kissing the teen's forehead. "You have nothing to worry about. Everyone is going to love you."

Alex let herself relax, feeling better in Emily's arms, grabbing a fistful of the woman's shirt before letting her eyes close.

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**Rest assured readers, Alex isn't going to let the topic of JJ and Emily's relationship drop (though it won't be a focus in the next chapter). Wondering how many of you can guess just who Alex plans on talking to about it though? Hope you all enjoyed!**


	8. Chapter 8

**I hope you all will enjoy this chapter! I may have borrowed a character from another television show that I love because I just couldn't resist the urge!**

**Happy Reading! -J**

**Chapter 8**

Alex and Emily were up early the next morning, both anxious about the day ahead, waking up before the alarm even went off. Alex dragged herself to her room, slowly pulling on her uniform, spending an extra few minutes in front of the mirror, unsure of how she felt about having to wear a uniform to school. Today the teen was wearing her school skirt, which was blue and plaid, along with a her blue blouse and knee high socks. Pulling on a pair of flats and grabbing her backpack, the teen made her way downstairs to the kitchen where Emily was making coffee and trying to decide on what to make for breakfast.

"I'm not really sure this is a good look for me," Alex declared as she entered the kitchen.

Looking up from the coffee maker Emily smiled, "what are you talking about? You look great!"

"I do not," Alex replied. "You're just saying that because you have to."

"I am not," Emily argued. "I'm saying it because it's true! You look adorable!"

"Adorable?" The teen repeated with a disgusted look on her face.

"Not adorable?" Emily corrected. "You look cool, hip, ummmm awesome?"

"Oh God please stop," Alex laughed, taking a seat at the kitchen island.

"Alright, so what do you want for breakfast?" Emily asked, opening up one of the cupboards. "I can make pancakes, or waffles. Eggs maybe? Cereal?"

"I'm really not hungry," Alex replied, picking at her nails.

"You should eat something sweetie," Emily said, placing a hand over the teen's to stop the nail picking.

"I'm pretty sure I'll throw up if I eat," Alex replied honestly. "I'm too nervous."

"Alright, but take a protein bar or something in case you get hungry," Emily said, grabbing a box out of the cupboard and handing it to the teen. "Also I didn't really think about lunches, so are you okay with buying your lunch?" The older woman asked, pulling money from her purse that was sitting on the counter.

"Sure, thanks" the teen replied, taking the money Emily offered her and putting it in her backpack.

"Also, I talked to Hotch this morning and he said I can leave early today, so I'll be at school to pick you up at 3, but then we're going to have to figure out the bus route because I'll have to work until 5," Emily explained.

"Okay, that sounds fine," Alex agreed, chewing her lip, while her knee bounced up and down, glancing at the clock every few seconds.

"Hey, today's going to be great you know that right?" Emily asked, running her hand through Alex's long wavy hair. "You're going to be fine."

"I know," Alex nodded, not exactly sounding all that convincing.

"Alright well we should probably get going then," Emily said, moving towards the door to put on her shoes, grabbing her briefcase and purse.

Alex slowly followed Emily towards the door, dragging her feet, not all that anxious to get to school.

"Emily?" Alex called out just as Emily was about to open the front door.

"Yeah?" Emily replied, turning around to find the teen standing directly behind her.

For a moment Alex hesitated, looking rather unsure of herself, before finally making up her mind and putting her arms around the taller brunette. Emily was surprised, but returned the hug, rubbing the teen's back in a comforting manner.

"You're going to do so great," Emily reassured, squeezing her daughter just a little bit tighter.

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"Are you sure you don't want me to come in with you?" Emily asked for the third time as the pair sat in Emily's car, parked in front of the school.

"No, I'll be fine," Alex replied, partially wanting Emily to come in with her, but too embarrassed to allow it. "I know where to go."

"Alright, well then you better get going, you don't want to be late," Emily said looking at her watch.

"You'll be here at the end of the day?" The teen asked.

"3 on the dot," Emily replied. "I'll be here. Don't worry okay. You're going to do great!"

"Okay, I'll see you later then," Alex said, hugging Emily one last time before grabbing her bag and exiting the car.

Alex looked back one more time, waving to Emily before making her way towards the school building, falling into step with the large groups of students that were walking about.

Entering the main office Alex found the same woman from the other day sitting behind the front desk, talking to another student. When the other student finally walked away a few minutes later, Alex approached the desk.

"Hi, I'm Alexandra Campbell," the teen introduced, unsure if the woman would remember her. "Dean Hackett told me I would need to come get my schedule….it's my first day."

"Ah, yes Alexandra, I have your schedule right here," the woman, who's name Alex read to be Mrs. Mckenzie, replied, handing Alex her schedule. "Someone should be here in a few minutes to show you around."

"Oh that's not necessary I'm sure I can…"

"Here she is now," Mrs. Mckenzie interrupted, pointing to a tall, skinny girl, with long brown hair walking towards them.

"Are you Alexandra?" The girl asked as she approached Alex.

"Alex," the teen replied, holding out her hand for the girl to shake, feeling slightly awkward.

"Spencer Hastings," the girl greeted, shaking Alex's hand firmly. "I'm in your first period English class. Dean Hackett said our schedules are pretty similar so I can show you around."

"You really don't have to do that," Alex replied, not wanting the girl to feel obligated to be nice to her.

"It's no problem," Spencer said. "It's a big school. We should probably go find your locker. It should be near mine since we have the same class. Do you have the number?"

Alex looked down at her schedule finding her locker assignment written at the top. "213," the teen replied.

"Right next to mine," Spencer smiled, leading Alex out of the office. "So are you new to DC?"

"Yeah, I just moved here from Chicago," Alex replied.

"How come you moved here?" Spencer asked curiously, as she pointed out Alex's locker.

"It's…it's a long story," Alex replied, opening her locker, taking out a notebook and pencil case before stuffing her backpack into the locker.

"So what other classes do you have?" Spencer asked, changing the subject, since she could see that Alex looked uncomfortable.

"Well I have English, history, phys-ed, then lunch, math, science, and French" Alex replied, handing her schedule over for Spencer to see.

"Well I have English, gym, math and French with you," Spencer said, reading the schedule over. "And I have friends who are in your history and science classes, so I'm sure they'll show you the way."

"Thanks," Alex said, following Spencer into a classroom, where students were just beginning to trickle in.

Alex followed Spencer towards the far side of the room where two girls were talking, one sitting in front of the other. One of the girls had short blonde hair, and even though she was sitting, she looked to be about Alex's height, a pair of extravagant looking earrings hanging from her ears. The other girl was tiny, with long hair that looked almost black.

"Hey guys," Spencer greeted the pair. "This is Alex, it's her first day here," Spencer explained. "Alex this is Olivia," she said pointing to the blonde, "and Zoey," she pointed to the smaller girl.

"Hi," Alex greeted, feeling slightly shy, something she usually was not.

"Oh my gosh, please tell me you have history next period, because neither of these two do and I really don't think I will survive the class alone," Olivia said, talking faster than anyone Alex had ever heard speak.

"That would be Liv's way of saying hello," Zoey laughed. "It's nice to meet you Alex."

"You too," Alex laughed. "I do have history next period by the way," she said looking at Olivia.

"Oh thank God," Olivia sighed. "You can keep me awake."

"Sounds good," Alex laughed, taking a seat across the aisle from the two girls, Spencer in front of her.

Alex pulled out a pen as her teacher walked in, writing his name on the board. As the teen looked around at the three girls surrounding her, she couldn't help but think that maybe this school wouldn't be so bad after all.

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After Alex left the car, Emily had to force herself to drive away, wanting so desperately to follow the teen inside and make sure she was okay before leaving. Since she was still early Emily stopped at Starbucks on her way to work, figuring she would go grab her favourite drink to start her day.

When she arrived at the BAU, she wasn't surprised to see the bullpen empty, as it was still early. She could see Hotch through the blinds, sitting at his desk in his office, already hard at work, something which didn't surprise the profiler at all. Knowing JJ would also be there already, Emily made her way towards the media liaison's office, two coffee cups in hands.

Emily knocked softly before entering, finding JJ sitting behind her desk, barely distinguishable behind the stacks of files that surrounded her.

"I brought your usual," Emily greeted, causing the blonde to look up from her work.

"Em! Hey!" JJ greeted happily, standing up and coming around the desk to take the coffee Emily was offering her. "God I missed having you here," JJ said, taking a long sip of her usual Starbucks order.

"Only because I feed your caffeine addiction," Emily laughed, taking a seat on the couch in the office, figuring she still had time before she needed to get to work.

"That might be true," JJ smiled, sitting down beside the brunette. "So how'd it go this morning?"

"I don't know, okay I guess," Emily replied. "Alex was pretty nervous, I felt kind of bad leaving her. I feel like a mom dropping her kid off at kindergarten for the first time, it's awful."

"Well you kind of are," JJ laughed. "Except that your kindergartener is fourteen instead of four. Don't worry though I'm sure she'll be fine. She's a smart kid, and she's bound to make friends," JJ reassured, reaching out to squeeze her friend's hand.

At this gesture Emily looked up, smiling at her friend, grateful for the support. Looking into the blonde's, bright blue eyes, Emily also couldn't help but think about what Alex said. Did she really look at JJ like she loved her? Did JJ look at her like that too? Looking at JJ now, all Emily could see was her friend looking at her the way she always did. Was she really not seeing something?

"You okay?" JJ asked, as Emily continued to stare, lost in her thoughts. "Em? Earth to Emily…"

"What? Oh yeah, sorry," Emily said, shaking her head and laughing. "Sorry, I guess I spaced out there for a minute. So are my files already on my desk?" She asked, trying to hide her embarrassment.

"Yep, gave you a few less than everyone else since you're leaving early today," JJ explained.

"Thanks Jen," Emily smiled, standing from her spot on the couch. "I better get to it then. Need to make sure I can still do this whole profiling thing," she joked.

"I'm sure you can," JJ smiled, also standing. "Do you want to have lunch together? Go to the deli?"

"Yeah, that sounds great," Emily agreed, making her way towards the office door. "I will see you then."

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"So how come you moved from Chicago," Zoey asked as the four girls sat down to lunch in the cafeteria.

The morning had gone by rather quickly for Alex, and she was grateful to have already found a group of friends who were happy to show her around and talk to her.

"It's kind of a long story," Alex said, placing her tray on the table before sitting down, feeling a little nervous about telling people she barely knew about her parents.

"We've got an hour," Olivia said, earning a glare from both Spencer and Zoey.

"Ignore her," Spencer said, shaking her head.

"What? I'm just saying we have time," Olivia replied, taking a bite of her sandwich.

"You know what? You're right," Alex said, feeling like she might as well get this over with now. "It's going to sound complicated though," taking a deep breath the teen braced herself. "I lived with my parents in Chicago. They adopted me when I was born," she began, looking down at her tray of food. "They um….they were killed…"

"Those murders?" Spencer asked, earning a nod from Alex, who was looking nervous. "I heard about that on the news," she said, looking to the other two girls. "There was a man murdering families who had adopted their kids in Chicago. Four families were killed."

"Oh my God," Zoey exclaimed, putting a hand over her mouth.

"I wasn't home at the time," Alex continued, taking another deep breath to calm her emotions. "My parents left me to my birth mother, Emily, in their will, so I moved to DC to live with her," Alex explained, figuring that she didn't need to give them every detail from that dreaded week.

"Wow, I'm so sorry," Olivia said, the normally bubbly blonde, looking sadly at her new friend.

"Thanks," Alex said, unable to look up at the girls, knowing all three were probably looking at the newest member of their group with pity written all over their faces.

"What's your birth mom like?" Spencer asked, hoping that the topic change would make Alex a little more comfortable.

"She's pretty great," Alex replied, looking up. "She had me when she was 18, so she's young, and she's cool. It's a little strange, living with someone you hardly know, but we're getting to know each other, so I guess it's going pretty well."

"That's great," Zoey smiled.

"You know we do a girls' night every Friday," Spencer said, as the girls continued to eat their lunches. "We rotate whose house it's at every week. We watch movies, eat junk, whatever else, and then have a sleepover. This week is at my house. You should come."

"Yeah! You should totally come, it's a lot of fun," Olivia said, Zoey nodding her head in agreement.

"I'll have to ask Emily, but that sounds great," Alex replied with a smile.

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Emily arrived at the school at 2:55pm, waiting in the same place where she dropped Alex off that morning, anxiously watching the clock, praying that Alex had a good first day.

The day had gone by rather slowly for the profiler, who couldn't help watching the clock, thinking about Alex and what she was probably doing. Derek and Reid had tried to distract the brunette, asking her questions about the cases they were working on, even though they really didn't need to, both happy to have their friend back at work. Lunch with JJ had helped get Alex off of Emily's mind, as the blonde spent most of their time together reassuring the brunette that Alex was perfectly fine.

When 2:30pm had finally rolled around Emily packed up faster than she ever had before, grabbing her suitcase and making a beeline for the elevators after bidding her coworkers a very hasty goodbye.

Emily turned her attention towards the school as students began pouring out, heading towards buses or other various vehicles in order to head home. Emily searched students' faces, looking for the familiar face of her fourteen year old, hoping said face would be graced with a smile when she did find it.

It was a few minutes later when she finally found her, walking with three other girls, laughing and chatting animatedly. Emily watched as the group stopped, not too far from the car, talking for a few minutes before Alex pointed towards Emily, bidding her friends goodbye before making her way to the vehicle.

"Hey," Alex greeted, getting into the car with a smile on her face.

"Hi," Emily said happily, relieved to see the teen looking so happy. "How'd it go?" She asked as she pulled out of the parking spot, watching as Alex waved to the group of girls she had been talking to.

"Great actually," Alex replied, buckling her seatbelt before turning her attention to the older brunette. "This girl Spencer showed me around, she's in a bunch of my classes and she introduced me to her two friends, Olivia and Zoey, I have some classes with them as well, and they're all really nice."

"That's great," Emily exclaimed. "And how about your classes?"

"They're pretty good," Alex replied. "I'm taking English, History, Gym, Science, math and French. The teachers are pretty decent. I've read 3 of the 4 books my English teacher assigned for the year, and so has Spencer so Mr. Hanks is letting us choose 3 of our own books to read and we're going to write reports for him. He said we can work together so it's pretty cool."

"That's great Lex," Emily replied with a smile. "And it's great to hear you found a friend who's as big of a book worm as you."

"Yeah Spencer's like crazy smart," Alex said. "Oh and that reminds me, she invited me to sleep over at her house Friday night."

"Wow a sleepover already huh?" Emily asked, extremely relieved that the teen had hit it off so well at the school.

"Yeah, I guess they have a weekly girls night and they asked me if I wanted to come. I guess they rotate houses or something," Alex explained.

"Well that sounds fun," Emily replied. "I would like to meet her parents though if that's okay. I can drop you off on Friday."

"Sounds good."

"Did you figure out what bus you need to take tomorrow?" Emily asked.

"Yep," Alex replied. "I'm on the same one as Zoey so she said she'd show me where it is. I guess she doesn't live too far from us."

"That's great," Emily smiled. "I'm so glad today went so well."

"You know I had some serious doubts, but I really like it there," Alex said.

"Do you have lots of homework?" Emily then asked.

"Yeah I have a bit," Alex replied.

"Alright well you can work on that when we get home and I'll make a nice dinner to celebrate," Emily said, looking over at the teen as she stopped at a red light.

"Sounds good," Alex replied. "Oh and I have to make a power point about myself for my English class for Friday. If I get it done by Wednesday do you think Garcia would look at it for me; help me make it all fancy?" The teen asked, looking for an opportunity to talk to the tech analyst.

"Sure, I'll see if she can come by after work," Emily replied.

"Great," Alex smiled, feeling truly happy for the first time in the last month.

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**So I have a bit of a Pretty Little Liars obsession (to go with my Criminal Minds obsession) and so I decided to include Spencer (who is my favourite character on the show) in this story just for fun! **

**Also I figured all of you would guess correctly that Alex would go to Garcia about Emily and JJ. I plan to have that interaction in the next chapter, so you guys have that to look forward to! Thanks for reading!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Happy Saturday!**

**Once again thank you to everyone who has been reading! I hope you're still enjoying my little world. I really like this chapter so I hope that you do too.**

**I know one of you asked about maybe getting something from JJ's POV and I think that is a wonderful idea! So look for that in the next couple chapters!**

**Happy Reading! -J**

**Chapter 9**

Wednesday after school, Alex took the bus home, hurrying back to the condo so she could get her homework done before Emily came home with Garcia. When Emily had asked Garcia about helping Alex with her assignment, the bubbly technical analyst was quick to agree, excited to be able to spend some time with the young girl. Alex was looking forward to Garcia's help, but she also had some ulterior motives, wanting to get some information about JJ from Penelope. Alex wasn't really sure how she was going to bring up the topic of Emily and JJ, but the teen was confident that the "all-knowing" Penelope Garcia would be able to provide her with the information that she needed.

It was just after 5:30pm when Alex heard voices in the hallway, the sounds of Emily's laughter distinguishable. Alex was just finishing up her math homework when the door opened, Emily and Garcia coming in, still talking and laughing as Alex looked up from her notebook.

"Hey Sugarplum," Garcia greeted happily, bounding into the room to give the teen a hug.

"Hi Penelope," Alex smiled, returning the hug. "Thanks for coming."

"Anything for my Mini Emily," Garcia replied.

"Mini Emily?" Alex laughed. "That's a new one."

"Well I mean just look at you!" Garcia said, pinching the teen's cheek. "You just look so much like our Princess."

"You are honestly certifiable Garcia," Emily laughed, placing a kiss on Alex's head as she peered over her shoulder. "Do you have a lot of homework?"

"This is the last of it," Alex said, finishing up her last question. "My PowerPoint is done, I just need some help making it look cool," Alex explained, turning her attention to Garcia.

"Not a problem," Garcia replied.

"Well why don't you two work on that and I'll make us a nice dinner," Emily said, looking in the fridge to see what she could cook up. "How do you feel about stir fry?" She asked.

"That sounds wonderful Emster," Garcia replied.

"Yeah that sounds good," Alex agreed. "The computer's in the office, we can work in there," she explained, standing up and leading Garcia into Emily's office, closing the door behind her.

"So why don't you let me take a look-see and then I'll show you how to make it all fancy," Garcia said, sitting down at the computer as Alex pulled up her presentation.

The pair went through the slide show, making changes and adding various effects and graphics, Garcia loving every minute of it.

"Penelope, can I ask you something?" Alex said some time later, the pair still making changes to the teen's assignment.

"Of course sugar, you can ask me anything," Garcia replied, looking up from the computer screen.

"What can you tell me about JJ's sexual orientation?" Alex asked, straight to the point.

"Um what?" Garcia asked surprised. "Why are you asking me that?"

"Because you're the "all-knowing" right? So I know you know," Alex explained. "And because if I ask JJ she'll probably tell Emily, and there's no way Emily going to tell me."

"And why exactly do you need to know this information?" Garcia asked, with one eyebrow raised.

"I think you know the answer to that," Alex said. "Because there's no way that I'm the only one who sees it."

Garcia studied the teen, "Emily and JJ?" she finally asked, confirming that she too had her suspicions about her friends.

At this Alex simply smiled, not saying a word.

"What do you know?" Garcia asked sounding slightly excited.

"I'm willing to share my knowledge, if you're willing to share yours," Alex answered with a grin.

Garcia considered this a moment before answering with "you first."

"Okay, because I trust you I'll go first," Alex said. "I happen to know for a fact that Emily is gay. And from my observations I would say that she has a thing for a certain blonde haired, blue-eyed friend of hers. Although I don't think she knows it."

"I knew it!" Garcia squealed, earning a glare from Alex who looked towards the door, hoping Emily wouldn't come in to see what was going on.

"Shhhhh, she's going to come in here!" Alex said, laughing quietly. "Now what can you tell me about JJ's type?"

"Well JJ tends to go for the tall, dark-haired men…and women," Garcia replied, a smile spreading across Alex's face.

"So she's bisexual?" Alex asked happily.

"She is," Garcia replied. "And Emily is just her type, but my Buttercup refuses to admit that she has a thing for our raven-haired superwoman."

"I just don't see how they don't see it," Alex said, shaking her head. "I mean I'm not crazy right? You see the looks?"

"Oh I've seen the looks," Garcia agreed. "But they're best friends, and I think they're both too afraid to risk that. Plus there is the issue of them working together."

"Yeah but the team must see it too right?" Alex asked.

"Oh most likely," Garcia said. "Well maybe not Reid. But the rest of them must have their suspicions as well." Garcia continued. "Now Sugarplum, why exactly are you bringing this up to me anyways?"

"Because I just want to give them a push in the right direction," Alex replied with a smile. "But I'm not going to be able to do it myself."

Garcia considered this for a moment, considering her options; knowing that her friends wouldn't want her to meddle in their relationship, but ultimately unable to resist.

"What did you have in mind?"

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Emily rushed home from work Friday night, knowing that Alex was at home, waiting to be dropped off at her new friend's house to spend the night. Since it was Emily's first teenager free night in a month, Garcia suggested a girls' night, instructing Emily to meet her and JJ for dinner after dropping Alex off.

When Emily arrived home she found Alex lounging on the couch, book in hand, clearly lost in the story, as she didn't even look up when Emily walked in.

"Hi," Emily called out as she took her shoes off by the door. "How was school?"

"Good," Alex replied, not even taking her eyes off her book.

"Good book?" Emily laughed, coming into the living room, Alex nodding in reply as she continued to read. "Do you need to eat before you go to your friends?"

"No we're ordering pizza," Alex said, placing her bookmark in her book before closing it. "Spencer said I could come over anytime."

"Okay, well let me run upstairs and change and then I can take you. You're all packed?" She asked.

"Yep," Alex replied, watching as Emily ran up the stairs.

Alex talked to Garcia earlier that day, and she knew the analyst had arranged for the women of the BAU to have a girls' night; one which Garcia intended to bail on so that JJ and Emily would have the night to themselves. Alex knew that it was a pretty lame plan, considering the pair had spent plenty of time alone and nothing had happened, but she couldn't help but hope that maybe this would be different. Alex hoped that her asking Emily about her feelings for JJ may have helped the brunette see what she was clearly missing before, but she wasn't too sure it would work.

"What are your plans for tonight?" Alex asked when Emily returned downstairs.

"Girls' night with JJ and Garcia," Emily replied, grabbing her purse from the kitchen island where she left it. "We're having dinner, then we'll probably go for drinks."

"That sounds fun," Alex said, as she got ready to leave, following Emily out the front door a few minutes later.

The pair got into Emily's car, Emily punching the Hastings' address into her GPS, as Alex told Emily about her day.

"How'd your presentation go?" Emily asked as they pulled out of the parking garage.

"Really well," Alex replied, a big smile on her face. "Everyone was really impressed with my slide show."

"Garcia will be happy to hear that," Emily laughed.

The two continue to chat, sharing stories about their days during their drive. It wasn't until the GPS indicated that they would be arriving at their destination in a few minutes that Alex suddenly fell silent.

"Emily?" Alex said, picking at her nails nervously. "What if…what if I have a nightmare?" She asked quietly, voicing a concern that had been on her mind a good portion of the day.

"You haven't had one in a few days," Emily said, looking over to see the teen looked incredibly nervous. Pulling over and putting the car in park, Emily turned her full attention to Alex. "I'm sure your friends will understand if you have a nightmare."

"But I'm a mess when I have one," Alex said, biting her lip. "It's embarrassing."

"You have nothing to be embarrassed about," Emily reassured, placing a hand on the teen's knee. "Everyone has nightmares, and I think given what you've been through it's completely understandable that you would."

"I guess," Alex replied sadly.

"You know if you don't want to stay I can pick you up later tonight," Emily suggested, not wanting the teen to push herself into something she wasn't ready for.

"No, no I want to stay," Alex said, shaking her head determinedly.

"Alright, but if there's any problems you call me okay?" Emily said. "Any time."

"Okay," Alex said, mustering up the best smile she could as Emily once again began the drive to the Hastings house.

Less than a minute later the pair pulled up to a large house, in a quiet neighbourhood, parking in the driveway and getting out of the car.

"Wow," Alex said, looking up at the house that towered over them. "This place is huge."

"It's gorgeous," Emily agreed, as they made their way up the front walk. "What did you say Spencer's parents did again?"

"I think they're lawyers or something," Alex replied, ringing the doorbell.

It wasn't long before Spencer answered the door, a big smile on her face.

"Alex! Hey!" Spencer said, opening the door wider to let the two brunettes in. "I'm Spencer," she said holding her and out for Emily to shake. "It's nice to meet you Ms. Prentiss."

"Please, call me Emily," Emily replied, shaking the teen's hand. "It's nice to meet you too, I've heard a lot about you."

"This is Olivia and Zoey," Spencer then introduced, pointing to the other two teens who were standing near the stairs. "I'll go get my mom," she then said, as Olivia and Zoey made their way closer to the new arrivals.

"It's nice to meet you," Zoey greeted, also shaking Emily's hand.

"Wow you two look so much alike," Olivia said as she looked from Emily to Alex and back again. "People say I look like my mom but I don't really see it, but you two….man it's crazy."

Emily laughed, looking at Alex who was also laughing, shaking her head at her new friend. "That's Olivia's way of saying hello," Alex said, still giggling.

Just then Spencer returned, her mother following close behind her.

"Hi, Veronica Hastings," Spencer's mom greeted, moving to shake Alex's hand. "You must be Alex. Spencer has been talking about you all week."

"It's nice to meet you," Alex greeted happily. "This is my…uh this is Emily," Alex said, pointing to Emily who was already shaking Veronica's hand.

"Emily Prentiss," Emily greeted politely. "Thanks so much for having Alex over."

"Oh it's no problem at all, we're happy to have her," Veronica replied. "My husband and I will be out for a little while tonight, but my older daughter Melissa will be here until we get back."

"No problem," Emily replied, turning her attention towards Alex. "Well kid, I'll pick you up tomorrow then?"

"Okay," Alex replied. "I'll call you in the morning."

"Okay, be good," she said, heading towards the door. "It was nice meeting all of you," she said. "And thanks again."

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"I can't believe Garcia bailed on girls' night," Emily exclaimed as she and JJ made their way into her condo a couple hours later.

"Yeah really," JJ said. "She makes a big fuss about us all getting together and then bails because of a computer virus? That girl is something else!"

"That's a pretty lame excuse too. I mean a computer virus really? I bet she's hanging out with Morgan or something." Emily said, making her way into the kitchen.

"Yeah there's definitely something fishy going on," JJ agreed. "Maybe she's got a boyfriend or something."

"Definitely," Emily said. "And what was with that restaurant? Nothing like the usual places she drags us too."

"Yeah it was definitely a lot more intimate," JJ said, shaking her head. "We'll have to do some digging and find out what's going on with that woman."

"Agreed," Emily said. "So is it a wine night or a beer night?" She asked the blonde.

"I think I'll go with wine," JJ said as Emily pulled out two glasses, grabbing a bottle of her favourite red. "Thanks for agreeing to come here by the way. I really wasn't feeling like hanging out at a bar."

"Not a problem," Emily smiled, following the blonde into the family room. "I only agreed to go out in the first place because Garcia was being so persistent. I prefer girls' night in anyways."

"Definitely," JJ agreed, taking a seat on one end of the couch, Emily on the other. "So was Alex excited about her girls' night?"

"She was, but I think she was a little nervous too," Emily replied. "She hasn't had a nightmare in a few days, and she's been sleeping in her room instead of mine, but I think she's worried about having one around her friends," she explained. "She has a pretty hard time shaking the dream when she wakes up."

"Well that's understandable," JJ said. "I'm sure she'll be fine though. Has she told her friends about everything."

"For the most part," Emily replied. "They seem like nice girls. I'm sure she'll be fine regardless of what happens."

"Good," JJ smiled. "You know you're doing great with her Em. I mean she seems to be doing really well despite everything. It's so nice to see."

"Thanks," Emily replied, looking slightly embarrassed. "You know I was really worried about what kind of mother I would be. But she makes it easy. She's such a great kid."

"Just like her mother," JJ replied, causing the brunette to turn a deeper shade of red. "You know, it's amazing to see you with her," JJ continued. "She's really changed you."

"Changed me?" Emily asked, giving JJ a confused look.

"Yeah, you just seem happier," JJ explained. "Not that you weren't happy before, but it's just different. It's like you're more content."

"I guess I kind of am," Emily agreed, taking a sip of her wine. "I mean she makes me happy. So I guess I am happier."

"It's great to see," JJ said with a smile, reaching out to squeeze her friend's hand.

At this Emily seemed to freeze, holding her best friend's hand, and looking in to clear, blue eyes, JJ looking back at her in a way that made Emily feel like the blonde was looking right into her soul. The pair were in a trance, still holding each other's hand, both lost in thought as they continued to stare into each other's eyes. Suddenly it was like there was a magnetic force, pulling them closer to each other, neither thinking about what they were doing, as they began to lean in slowly. Just as both agents began to tilt their heads, hypnotized by each other's eyes, JJ's phone rang from it's place on the coffee table, breaking the trance; both women pulling away quickly, looking embarrassed.

JJ grabbed her phone, looking at the I.D. "Sorry it's Hotch, I better get this," she explained, standing up to move into Emily's office where she could talk to her boss.

Emily watched as JJ walked into the office, feeling extremely confused about the moment that the phone had just interrupted. The brunette had been so entranced by the blonde's blue eyes that she had let her guard down, feeling a pull towards her friend that she had never felt before.

"I'm so sorry, Em," JJ said as she walked back in the room, interrupting Emily's thoughts, and looking slightly embarrassed. "A case came through Hotch. The team's leaving first thing in the morning. I need to head into the office to help Hotch with a few things so we'll be ready to go."

"It's no problem," Emily replied, trying to sound casual. "Let Hotch know I will head into the office tomorrow after I pick Alex up to help Garcia."

"Sounds good," JJ smiled, avoiding looking into her friend's eyes, afraid of what might happen if she did.

The pair walked towards the door, JJ turning towards Emily as they approached the front door.

"Thanks so much for dinner," JJ said. "I had a really great time."

"Me too," Emily replied, as JJ leaned in to hug her; a hug which seemed to last a little longer than usual.

"I will talk to you tomorrow," JJ said, reluctantly opening the door.

"Be safe," Emily replied, as she watched her friend leave, shutting the door once the blonde made it into the elevator down the hall.

For a minute Emily stood, leaning against the door, wondering what the hell had just happened. Between the moment on the couch, and the goodbye that the pair had just had, the brunette couldn't help but think that something had definitely just changed between the two. As Emily stood, thinking about her friendship, and everything that had transpired over the last month, the brunette seemed to be hit with a revelation.

She had fallen for her best friend.

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**Please don't hate me!**


	10. Chapter 10

**So originally I wasn't going to include this chapter, but then I felt like it was necessary, just to settle a few things (like where Alex is going to go when Emily travels with the team).**

**I really want to get Emily back to work full-time, as it is necessary for what I have planned, so expect a small time jump in the next chapter.**

**Thanks to everyone who has offered various suggestions. One of you actually suggested something that I really loved and have every intention of using in the next chapter so thank you!**

**Hope you enjoy this chapter! -J**

**Chapter 10**

The next morning Emily made her way to the Hastings' house just after 10am, planning to drop Alex off at home before going into the office to work with Garcia while the team traveled to Iowa. The team had left first thing that morning, and had already arrived, so Emily was anxious to get to work, knowing they would need as much help as possible.

The unsub was targeting brunette, females in their thirties, and it seemed like he was escalating rather quickly, having raped and murdered 3 women already; another still missing. JJ had sent Emily everything they had about the murders and it was decided that Emily would help Reid with the geographic profile from Quantico, while the others interviewed victim's families.

Emily arrived at the Hastings', ringing the doorbell and waiting for someone to answer. She needn't wait long, as Veronica Hastings soon opened up the door, a big smile on her face.

"Emily, hi," she greeted, opening up the door to let Emily in.

"Hi, sorry about having to come so early, I actually have to head into work," Emily explained.

"Oh it's no problem. Alex told us a bit about your job," Veronica replied. "It must be difficult."

"It can be," Emily agreed. "Alex hasn't actually been living with me very long, so we're just trying to figure out how to make everything work."

"Spencer told me about that," Veronica replied. "Do you have to travel a lot for work?"

"Yes normally," Emily explained. "I haven't been travelling with the team for the last month though. I'm still trying to figure out a solution to leaving Alex. I don't exactly have family for her to stay with."

"You know Emily, we have plenty of space here," Veronica said. "Alex is more than welcome to stay here when you have to travel."

"Oh no, Veronica, thank you, but I couldn't ask that of you," Emily replied.

"You're not asking, I'm offering," Veronica said. "The girls get along great, and we can make sure she gets to school and what not. It wouldn't be a problem at all."

"Wow thank you. Let…let me think about it, and talk to Alex," Emily replied, wanting to make sure the teen would be okay with this arrangement before agreeing. "Is she ready to go, do you know?"

"I think she is, but you know if you need to go to work, Alex can stay the night again," Veronica offered. "I know what it's like, working late, working weekends. At least this way you won't have to worry about getting home early today. You can come get her tomorrow whenever you're ready."

"Are- are you sure?" Emily asked, not wanting to impose.

"Of course," Veronica replied with a smile.

"Hey," Alex greeted, coming down the stairs with the other three teens. "Sorry I didn't realize you were here already. I'll go get my bag."

"Actually, Sweetie, Veronica was wondering if you wanted to stay here again tonight since I have to go into work," Emily replied.

"Really?" Spencer asked excitedly, looking to her mother who nodded. "Awesome."

"Does that sound okay?" Emily asked a little quieter when Alex was standing in front of her.

"Yeah sure," Alex replied. "Are you coming to get me tomorrow though? Because I have an appointment Monday morning," Alex said, reminding Emily of the teen's appointment with Dr. Sullivan.

"Yes of course," Emily replied. "I will come get you tomorrow as soon as I can."

"Okay," Alex smiled. "Well say hi to everyone for me."

"I will," Emily replied with a smile. "And you be good okay?"

"I will," Alex said, giving Emily a hug before the profiler turned to head out the front door.

"Thanks again, Veronica," she said. "I'll see you tomorrow kid."

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Emily arrived at work less than an hour later, heading straight to Garcia's lair to find out what was going on with the team before getting to work. Knocking briefly, the profiler entered the office to find Garcia typing away furiously at one of her computers.

"Well it looks like your computers are doing well," Emily said, walking up behind the analyst.

"What?" Garcia asked confused, not taking her eyes off the screen. "Why wouldn't my babies be doing well?"

"Computer virus?" Emily replied. "You know the reason you bailed on me and JJ last night."

"Oh right of course," Garcia replied. "Well I fixed that."

"Sure you did," Emily replied. "I'm going to figure out what you're hiding Garcia, but for right now, what's going on with the team?" She asked.

"The body of the missing woman was found just before they arrived, in a dumpster behind some bar. JJ and my Chocolate God are there now. Hotch and Rossi are at the morgue, going over the bodies. The families of the victims are all scheduled to meet the team this afternoon at the precinct. Oh and our Boy Wonder is doing his map thing as we speak. He wanted you to call him after you had a chance to look everything over."

"Will do, thanks Garcia," Emily replied, turning to leave, but being pulled back when Garcia grabbed her arm.

"Wait how was girls' night?" She asked.

"It was fun," Emily replied, not looking her friend in the eye, something that didn't go unnoticed by the blonde. "That restaurant was really good. A little fancier than your usual choices though."

"Well I just thought we deserved to treat ourselves," Garcia explained, trying to sound casual. "Did you guys go out after?"

"No we just went back to my place and drank some wine," Emily said. "Until Hotch called that is."

"Boss man does have a way of ruining a good night doesn't he?" Garcia said, disappointed that Emily and JJ's night had been cut short.

"Well unfortunately it is a part of the job," Emily replied. "I better get to work though. I'll check in with you a little later Pen."

"I'll be here," Garcia replied, waving as Emily made her way out to her desk.

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As soon as the team landed in Iowa, everyone headed their separate ways with plans to meet up at the police station by lunch to interview victim's families. Hotch asked JJ to go with Morgan to the newest crime scene, which was about 20 minutes from the airport. The drive was enjoyed in relative silence, Morgan focused on where they were going, while JJ browsed the case file, once again going over the details to make sure she had it all down.

JJ couldn't help but be bothered by this case. Looking through the photos of the 4 victims she couldn't help but see Emily's face staring back at her, as all four shared similarities with her best friend. It was because of this detail that the media liaison was grateful that Emily was working from Quantico, happy that she didn't have to worry about Emily being out in the field.

The crime scene was surrounded by cops when they finally arrived, both JJ and Morgan flashing their badges to get beyond the police tape, immediately making their way over to the dumpster where they knew the latest victim had been found.

"Valarie Monroe, 33," a cop standing by the dumpster told the Agents as they peered into the dumpster. "Went missing Thursday night. I'm Officer Holbrook. My captain told me to expect you."

"Agent Jareau," JJ greeted. "This is Agent Morgan. You'll meet the rest of our team this afternoon."

"Were all the dump sites like this?" Morgan asked as he looked around.

"Yep pretty much," Officer Holbrook replied. "All dumpsters behind various buildings.

"He's putting them places he knows they'll be found," Morgan points out. "I mean he must know that someone's bound to take the garbage out and find these women."

"And there's no signs of a struggle anywhere around, so he must be killing them somewhere else," JJ added.

"He has an obvious hatred towards women," Morgan continued. "I mean between the rape, signs of torture, brutal kill and then literally throwing them out like trash, this guy has a lot of anger."

"Doesn't seem to be any sign of remorse either," JJ pointed out, knowing from previous cases that unsubs who feel remorse about their kills tend to take care of the bodies. "I mean the clothes are torn and filthy, the body is covered in grime and then he dumps them in with the trash."

"You've got that right," Morgan agreed, walking around to see if he could get anything else from the scene.

As Morgan looked around JJ looked into the dumpster once again. Valarie Monroe had dark brown hair, dark like Emily's and her lifeless eyes were also brown, another feature she shared with Emily. As her thoughts strayed to her best friend, JJ's eyes began to sting with tears, and she turned away quickly, afraid that she might be sick.

Morgan, who was just coming back around the dumpster, saw JJ turn away quickly, holding on to the edge of the dumpster as she attempted to control her breathing.

"Hey you okay?" Morgan asked.

"What?" JJ replied turning around to face Morgan, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Yeah I'm fine," she finished, turning so she couldn't see Valarie's body.

"Are you sure? Because you look kind of sick," Morgan said.

"I…she just looks so much like…" JJ replied, unable to finish.

"…like Prentiss?" Morgan said, completing JJ's thought. "I thought the same thing when I saw her photo in the file," he admitted. "But it's not Prentiss JJ. She's fine."

"I know," JJ replied, looking embarrassed. "I just hate when one of us fits victomology."

"We all do," Morgan said, giving JJ a sad smile. "But unfortunately it's going to happen from time to time. We just need to remember that Emily is safe, and we have to do everything we can to stop this bastard from hurting any more women."

"You're right," JJ said with a small smile. "Thanks Derek."

"Anytime blondie," Morgan grinned. "Come on, I'll let you buy me lunch before we get back to the station."

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It was just after 8pm by the time Emily returned home that night, having been ordered by Hotch to call it a night. After helping Reid with the geographic profile, Emily had helped Garcia delve into the victim's pasts, looking for any overlap between the 4 women besides their appearances.

Walking into the condo and placing her briefcase on the kitchen island, Emily found a note on the counter, recognizing Alex's messy scrawl instantly.

_Emily,_

_Spencer's sister brought me to pick up my homework. Hope you had a good day. See you tomorrow_

_Alex _

_xoxo_

Emily smiled, leaving the note on the counter, while she moved to the fridge to look for something to eat. Not feeling much like cooking Emily instead opted for a bowl of cereal, moving to eat it in the family room; hoping that some mindless television would help her take her mind off the case for the night. Landing on some terrible reality show, Emily sat and watched, slowly eating her cereal, feeling kind of lonely without Alex there with her.

Just as she was considering calling the teen just to check in, her cell phone started to ring from where it was sitting on the cushion beside her. Checking the caller I.D, Emily saw that it was JJ calling. Since she hadn't really talked to the blonde much since her revelation the night before, Emily felt slightly nervous, lingering a moment before answering the phone.

"Jen, hey," Emily greeted. "Did someone else go missing?" She asked, thinking that perhaps the unsub had struck again.

"Hey Em," JJ replied. "No, nothing else has happened with the case. At least not that we know of yet. I'm at the hotel. I just thought I'd call and check in."

"Check in?" Emily asked sounding a little confused.

"Yeah, I just wanted to see how you were doing." JJ replied awkwardly.

"Ummm I'm okay," Emily answered. "How are you doing?"

"Good…I'm good," JJ said.

"Jen is everything okay?" Emily asked, unsure of why her friend was acting so strangely. _Maybe it's about last night_ Emily thought to herself, _maybe she realized what almost happened before Hotch called._

"Yeah…yeah everything's fine…I was just…I mean, I just thought I'd call you," JJ replied, stumbling over her words.

"Jennifer, I don't need to be able to see you to know there's something wrong with you, you know," Emily said, recognizing the blonde's worried tone, imagining her on the other end of the phone, pinching the bridge of her nose. "What's going on?"

"It's just….they just look so much like you," JJ said quietly.

"Who? The victims?" Emily asked, realizing her friend's strange behaviour had nothing to do with the previous night's events.

"I went to the latest dump site today, and I just couldn't stop picturing you every time I looked at the victim and it was just making me sick," JJ replied honestly. "I guess I just needed to talk to you to settle myself. I'm sorry…I'm being stupid."

"Hey, hey none of that. It's fine," Emily assured her. "You remember that case a few months back in Boston? When the unsub was targeting blondes with blue eyes?"

"Yeah," JJ replied.

"I spent that whole week watching you like a hawk whenever you weren't looking. I felt uneasy every time we left the station," Emily explained. "But Jen you realize I'm not even in the same state as you right? I'm safer than any of you right now."

"I know," JJ said. "I don't know what's wrong with me."

"Nothing's wrong with you," Emily laughed. "Don't worry Jen, I completely understand."

"Thanks," JJ replied, smiling even though Emily couldn't see her. "So what are you and that teen of yours up to?" She then asked, feeling better, but not entirely anxious to end the conversation with her friend.

"Alex is actually still at Spencer's," Emily replied. "Her mom offered to keep her another night so I didn't have to worry about rushing home. Seems so empty here without her."

"You know I was just thinking that the hotel room felt empty," JJ said. "It's pretty booked up so we had to double up, but I'm all by my lonesome without you here with us."

"Well I will just have to get back to work full-time then won't I?" Emily said with a laugh. "We wouldn't want you to be lonely."

"I would appreciate that very much," JJ laughed. "Although while I am glad you're not on this particular case, we do miss having you with us. Have you thought anymore about what you're going to do about that?"

"Actually Spencer's mom offered up her house," Emily replied. "I just need to talk to Alex about it. Although I think I do want to take a little more time. I just want to be sure that she's okay with me leaving for extended periods of time."

"Of course," JJ agreed, smiling at how much Emily cared for the young girl. "Well I should probably get going. We're getting a pretty early start tomorrow, and I still want to shower. Sorry again for calling."

"You have nothing to apologize for Jen," Emily said, her smile evident in her voice. "Call anytime."

"Thanks Em," JJ replied with a smile. "I will talk to you tomorrow. Have a good night"

"You too," Emily replied. "Stay safe."


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey Guys!**

**I was really hoping to post this chapter yesterday but after a very long day at work I just couldn't stay awake to get it done! I hope that it was worth the wait! I will try to get the next one up as soon as I can!**

**Also a big thanks to the Guest who suggested using Olivia to help push things along a bit! Loved the idea and I just had to use it!**

**Happy Reading! -J**

**Chapter 11**

**2 Weeks Later…**

"Emily's going back to work full-time on Monday," Alex told Dr. Sullivan, as she sat across from her Friday after school. "She'll be travelling with the team again when they get called away on cases."

"And how do you feel about that?" Dr. Sullivan asked.

"I don't know," Alex replied with a shrug. "I mean I knew this was going to happen eventually. It's her job, and I know how much she loves it."

"That doesn't mean you have to like it," Dr. Sullivan pointed out. "Remember Alex we talked about being honest about our feelings. How do you really feel about Emily going back to work?"

"I guess it just makes me nervous," Alex replied, biting her lip. "I know she knows what she's doing. And the team are all trained and whatever, but…it's just that…I've seen what can happen while she's at work…and…and I don't want to lose Emily too," Alex admitted quietly.

"Have you talked to Emily about this?" Dr. Sullivan asked.

"No," Alex replied, shaking her head. "I don't want to make her feel guilty just because I'm scared. Plus she's already put off going back for so long for me."

"But perhaps talking to Emily will help ease some of your worries," Dr. Sullivan suggested. "Emily will understand your fears better than anyone, and maybe if you talk them out together, you might feel better about the whole situation."

"I don't know…I guess," Alex agreed, picking at her fingernails nervously.

"Alex it's okay to be afraid," Dr. Sullivan, continued, seeing that the teen wasn't going to keep talking. "Anyone in your situation would feel the same way, but if you let Emily go back to work without talking about it, you're only going to feel worse about it. You've been making a lot of progress Alex, and I would hate to see you back-track because you don't want to talk to Emily."

"I guess you're right," Alex agreed, looking up at the doctor.

"I am," Dr. Sullivan smiled. "So that's your homework for today then. I want you to go home and talk to Emily. Tell her exactly what you told me. Got it?"

"Got it."

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"What time are the girls coming again?" Emily asked when she and Alex returned to the condo half an hour later.

"They should be here around 6pm," Alex replied, looking at the clock and seeing that it was almost 5pm.

Alex had gone to each of her new friends' houses in the last two weeks for girls' night, happy to have friends to laugh and talk to, and whose company she truly enjoyed. Olivia, Spencer and Zoey were people that Alex could rely on and trust, and she was grateful to have made such good friends so quickly. Since the girls rotated houses every Friday night for girls' night, Alex had asked Emily if they could have her friends over at the condo before Emily went back to travelling with the team. Emily happily agreed, anxious to get to spend a little more time with Alex's friends who she thought seemed like great girls.

"I'll order the pizza in about 45 minutes then," Emily said, placing grocery bags with snacks and drinks on the counter. "Or should I wait until they get here?"

"Doesn't matter," Alex replied, putting the soda they had bought into the fridge. "Whatever you think."

"Hey, I thought you were excited about your friends coming over?" Emily asked, noticing that the teen had been acting a little strange since they left Dr. Sullivan's office.

"I am," Alex replied, moving into the living room where she parked herself on the couch and turned the TV on.

"Then what's wrong?" Emily asked, following the teen into the family room and sitting down beside her. "Honey, what's going on? You've been acting strange since your appointment," Emily said, taking the remote from Alex's hand and turning the television back off. "Sweetie please talk to me."

Looking up and meeting Emily's eyes, Alex's brown orbs instantly filled with tears, no longer able to hold it together.

"Hey, hey what's wrong," Emily said, reaching out and pulling Alex into her arms. "Tell me what's going on," she said draping Alex's legs over her lap so the teen was basically sitting on her.

"I'm just…I'm scared," Alex answered quietly, her voice shaking with tears.

"Scared of what?" Emily asked, running her fingers through dark locks as Alex rested her head against Emily's shoulder.

"You…y-you going back to w-work," Alex replied, practically whispering.

"Oh honey, I told you I don't have to go back yet if you're not ready," Emily said.

"It's not t-that," Alex said, looking up. "I'm okay with being away from you…I'm just…I'm scared of what could happen."

Emily nodded, understanding that the teen was referring to the dangers she faced in her job.

"Alex you know my team works very hard to keep each other safe," Emily said, still playing with the teen's hair.

"I know," Alex said, wiping away a tear. "But…I mean I've seen what could happen…and…I already lost my parents…I…I don't want to lose another mom."

"Hey, look at me," Emily said, tilting Alex's chin up to look her in the eyes. "You're not going to lose me okay? If you want me to walk away from the job I will."

"No…no I don't want that," Alex replied shaking her head. "I...you…you'll be safe right? You'll be careful."

"Always," Emily said, brushing a tear off Alex's cheek with her thumb. "The team will have my back. And I promise I will always do everything in my power to come home to you. I need you to trust that okay?"

"Okay," Alex replied, letting Emily once again pull her into a hug.

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"Oh that colour's pretty," Zoey said later that night, pointing to the nail polish Alex was currently brushing onto Spencer's nails. "Will you do mine next?"

"Yeah sure," Alex smiled from her spot on the floor.

The girls had arrived at 6pm on the dot, all three excited for their night. Emily had ordered pizzas, which were delivered by 6:30pm, sitting and eating with the girls, happy to get the chance to talk to them. Wanting to give them some privacy, Emily had ventured into her office to read, while the girls were in the family room, painting their nails and reading magazines.

"We should watch Pretty in Pink," Olivia called from where she was going through Emily's DVD collection.

"Oooo yeah! I love that movie!" Spencer said, trying to keep her hand still as Alex finished with her nails.

"Go ahead and put it in," Alex replied, pointing to the DVD player as Spencer moved over so Zoey could sit in front of her, just as there was a knock on the door. "Be right back," Alex said, running to answer the door.

Looking through the peephole and seeing that it was JJ, Alex quickly pulled the door open.

"JJ hey!" Alex greeted, giving the blonde a hug. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh I was just in the neighbourhood so I thought I'd stop by," JJ replied. "I thought you'd be at your friends."

"Actually the girls are here," Alex explained. "Come on, I want you to meet them," she said, grabbing JJ by the hand and pulling her inside.

"Emily, JJ's here," Alex called as she passed the brunette's office, knocking on the door quickly before continuing to pull JJ towards the family room. "Guys this is JJ, she works with Emily" Alex introduced as Emily came out of her office. "JJ this is Spencer, Zoey and Olivia," she continued, pointing to each girl in turn.

"I didn't know you were coming over," Emily said as she made her way into the family room. Emily had spent the last couple weeks desperately trying to squash the feelings she was harbouring for her best friend, constantly working to act normal, so as not to alert anyone. While she felt like she was keeping things under wraps at work, Emily couldn't help but feel Alex's constant gaze on her whenever JJ was around; the teen's knowing smile ever present.

"Oh well I was around," JJ replied with a smile. "I didn't mean to intrude though, I didn't realize you had company. I can just go."

"What no!" Alex said, once again grabbing JJ by the hand. "We're watching Pretty In Pink. You two should watch with us!"

"Oh no, you don't want two old ladies like us hanging out with you," Emily laughed not wanting to intrude on Alex's time with her friends, and a little weary about the teen watching her every move with JJ.

"No you should watch," Olivia argued, plunking down on the couch. "And you guys are hardly old, not compared to my mom at least."

"Why thank you Olivia," Emily laughed.

"Please stay?" Alex asked, looking from JJ to Emily, her big brown eyes begging the pair to stay.

"Alright, alright," Emily laughed, shaking her head at the teen's antics. "You in Jen?"

"Sure why not," JJ said, following Emily towards the smaller sofa where they both sat down. "I do love this movie."

Alex sat down with Zoey, reaching for the nail polish to paint her friend's nails, smiling as Emily and JJ made themselves comfortable on the couch.

Olivia started the movie and the group fell quiet, watching silently for a while before the teens began chatting, asking Emily and JJ questions every now and then, all laughing and enjoying themselves. Alex tried to be subtle as she watched Emily and JJ joking with each other; their guards clearly down, as they seemed to draw closer to each other throughout the night.

When the movie ended, Emily got up to go to the washroom, while Alex made her way to the DVD player to take the movie out, before squishing herself between Spencer and Zoey on the couch.

"So how long have you and Emily been together?" Olivia asked, looking towards JJ, who choked on the sip of coke she was taking.

"Oh um Emily and I are just friends," JJ replied embarrassedly. "But I've known her a couple years."

"You'll have to excuse Olivia," Spencer said, seeing the blonde's blush. "She tends to just say whatever's on her mind."

"What I'm sorry!" Olivia said. "It's just that you guys looked…and…well."

"Liv, let it go," Zoey replied, elbowing her friend in the ribs to get her to stop talking.

"Emily and JJ are just really close," Alex said, secretly grateful for her friend's question, as it seemed to have flustered JJ quite a bit. "They're best friends."

"I'm sorry," Olivia repeated. "I really don't have a filter."

"It's no big deal," JJ replied, hoping her cheeks weren't as red as they currently felt. While Olivia's question had shocked her, and she felt a little flustered; the blonde was surprised to find that the idea didn't really seem to bother her at all.

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Sunday afternoon the team, Alex, Haley and Jack all gathered at Rossi's house for what would probably be the final barbeque of the year, as September began to cool the air. Since the day was still relatively warm for the month, the team were all gathered in the backyard of Rossi's large mansion, all happy to enjoy a day free from the country's killers. JJ and Garcia were currently sitting and talking with Haley, who had baby Jack with her, while Hotch, Rossi and Morgan were manning the barbeque. Emily and Reid were currently teaching Alex how to play chess, the 14-yeard old sharing a seat with Emily as the pair attempted to beat Reid at his favourite game.

JJ had spent a lot of time the day before, thinking about what Olivia had asked her, trying to figure out what the teen had seen to make her believe that she and Emily were dating. The blonde also couldn't help but imagine what it might be like if they were a couple, picturing herself, Emily and Alex spending time together, just like a family. JJ attempted to shake these thoughts from her mind, reminding herself that Emily was her best friend, and nothing more.

While JJ attempted to keep her attention focused on her conversation with Haley and Garcia, the blonde's gaze kept falling on the two brunette's who were currently giggling at the perplexed look on Reid's face, clearly realizing that he was being beaten.

"So are you seeing anyone JJ?" Haley asked, snapping the blonde out of her daze.

"Oh no," JJ replied. "I've been on a few dates recently, but nothing serious. It isn't exactly easy to date when you spend half your time travelling around the country."

"I hear that," Garcia agreed. "I may not travel with you guys, but men tend to have a difficult time understanding when I have to leave in the middle of a date because someone needs a search done right away."

Before Haley was able to reply, Jack began to cry from where he was currently sitting in Garcia's arms. "He's probably getting hungry," Haley explained. "I better get his bottle," she said, taking Jack and heading towards the house.

JJ once again let her attention fall to Alex and Emily, watching as Alex moved one of her chess pieces, receiving a high five from Emily, who then put an arm around the teen, running her fingers through her long, brown hair.

"That's so nice to see," Garcia said, following JJ's gaze.

"Hmmm?" JJ replied.

"Emster and Lexi," Garcia said. "I've never seen our Princess so happy."

"I know," JJ agreed. "It's beautiful," she said, blushing as she couldn't help but think how beautiful Emily currently looked with a big smile on her face. _Geez JJ, get a grip_ she thought to herself.

"It really is," Garcia said, smiling as she saw the look of longing written across her friend's face. "You thinking about it?"

"Thinking about what?" JJ asked confused.

"Having a family of your own?" Garcia questioned.

"Oh yeah, I can't even manage to get a second date but I'm thinking about starting a family," JJ laughed, looking at her friend like she was crazy.

"That's just because you haven't found the right person," Garcia said, wishing she could just take the blonde and force her to see what was right in front of her.

"I guess," JJ replied just as her cell began to ring. "I better get this," she said looking at the caller I.D and not recognizing the number, heading inside so she could hear the caller.

JJ returned to the yard a few minutes later, seeing Garcia was now standing at the grill talking to Morgan. Reid, Emily and Alex seemed to have finished their chess game, so the blonde made her way over to the trio.

"So did you beat him?" JJ asked Alex.

"Yep," Alex replied, a big smile on her face. "Although Emily told me what to do."

"I definitely let you guys beat me," Reid argued, not wanting to admit defeat.

"Oh please," Emily said. "Face it Reid you lost."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Reid laughed as JJ ruffled the genius' hair.

"Em, do you think I could talk to you for a minute?" JJ then asked, wanting to let the brunette know that they team was likely leaving for a case in Boston the next day, knowing she was still feeling a little weary about leaving Alex.

"Sure," Emily replied, standing up. "You should play him again," she said to Alex, pointing to the chessboard before following JJ towards the house.

"Is everything okay?" Emily asked when the pair were standing close to the house.

"Yeah, I just wanted to let you know that I got a call and I'm pretty sure we'll be heading to Boston tomorrow," JJ explained. "I just thought you'd want a heads up since it's your first case back."

"Right, thanks," Emily said, looking sadly towards Alex. "This is going to suck."

"I know," JJ agreed, reaching out to rub the brunette's shoulder. "Part of me wanted to refuse the case so you could have more time, but it seems like a pretty bad one."

Emily laughed. "Well I guess we better enjoy today then huh?"

"I guess we better," JJ agreed. "Back to reality tomorrow."

"Thanks for letting me know Jen," Emily smiled, reaching out and squeezing the blonde's hand. "You want to watch us beat a genius at chess?"

"Definitely," JJ laughed, trying to ignore the swooping feeling she got in her stomach when Emily grabbed her hand.

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"So have you seen any progress?" Alex asked, sitting next to Garcia when Morgan got up to get another drink and gesturing towards Emily and JJ who were sitting together, talking to Reid.

"It's hard to tell," Garcia replied. "They're both so guarded about their feelings, but they do seem very cozy together don't they?"

"That's for sure," Alex agreed with a smile. "You know I think Emily's starting to realize that I was right about her feelings because I keep catching her looking to see if I'm watching whenever she's with JJ."

"Wow are you profiling Emily?" Garcia laughed.

"No," Alex scoffed. "I'm just making observations! She's kind of obvious about it. She's just in denial."

"They both are," Garcia said, watching the pair who were laughing at something Reid said.

"You know now that Emily's going back to working full-time, it's going to be up to you to push them in the right direction," Alex said.

"They definitely need a shove, that's for sure," Garcia laughed, considering the things she could do. "I will have to brainstorm, but rest assured my little Princess I will do my best!"

"I know you will," Alex smiled as Emily made her way over to the pair.

"Hey kid we better get going, you've got school tomorrow," Emily said as she approached.

"Yeah sure," Alex replied. "I'll see you later Penelope," she said, giving the blonde a hug.

"See you soon Sugar," Garcia replied.

"I'm gonna go say goodbye to everyone," Alex then said, running over to where the rest of the team were sitting.

Emily watched happily as Alex hugged each team member, even giving Reid and Hotch slightly awkward embraces.

"You know you've got yourself one amazing kid Princess," Garcia said, also smiling as she watched Alex giving JJ a big hug.

"Yes I do," Emily replied, making her way over to Alex, saying goodbye to the team, before leading Alex towards the car.

"You're leaving tomorrow aren't you?" Alex asked as they got in the car.

"How did you know?" Emily asked, sounding surprised, having planned to tell Alex on the way home.

"Ever since you talked to JJ earlier you've been watching me, looking all sad or something," Alex replied, laughing at the look on Emily's face.

"You should really consider a career in profiling," Emily laughed.

"I'll keep it in mind," Alex replied with a grin. "And you know you don't need to worry about me. I know I was pretty freaked out at first but I'll be okay. "

"You're absolutely sure you don't want me to stay?" Emily asked seriously.

"Positive," Alex replied. "I'll be fine with the Hastings and Penelope will be around if I need anything. And you'll call right?"

"At every chance I get," Emily replied with a smile.

"Then I'll be fine," Alex smiled. "Now let's go home and have some ice cream."

"Ice cream huh?" Emily laughed.

"Yes because there's no better end to a perfect day than ice cream," Alex replied with a smile.


	12. Chapter 12

**Well here's the next chapter! I really hope you all enjoy it!**

**Thanks so much to everyone who has been reading! You guys are the best!**

**-J**

**Chapter 12**

Monday morning Emily and Alex got up early to have breakfast together, Emily having promised that she would make chocolate chip pancakes for them.

"These are really good," Alex said, mouth full of pancakes.

"I'm glad you like them," Emily laughed, taking a sip of her coffee.

"So where exactly are you guys going?" The teen asked a few minutes later.

"Boston."

"Do you know how long you'll be gone?"

"It's different all the time," Emily explained. "It could be a few days, it could be a week. It all depends."

"Right," Alex replied, nodding. "Well I talked to Spencer last night and she told her mom I would be coming home with her after school. And I packed everything I think I'll need."

"Perfect. Remember to thank Veronica for me," Emily said. "And if you need something and no one can bring you here just call Garcia, she has a key."

"Will do," Alex replied, finishing up the last of her pancakes before going to wash her plate.

"And you're absolutely sure that you're okay with this?" Emily asked for what felt like the hundredth time since last night.

"Yes," Alex replied. "I'm not going to lie I'll probably worry, but I'll be okay."

"Okay," Emily said, helping Alex clean up the dishes. "If you need anything you call me okay? Even if it's the middle of the night, don't hesitate to call."

"I'll call, I promise," Alex replied, as they both continued to clean up.

The pair took about 15 minutes to finish putting the kitchen back together, not wanting to leave a mess since they weren't sure when they would be returning to the condo next.

"You better get your bag," Emily said looking at the time. "We need to get going."

Alex ran up the stairs to retrieve her bag while Emily got her things together from her office, both meeting at the door a few minutes later.

"You're going to be safe right?" Alex asked once she had her shoes and coat on, looking up at Emily, suddenly serious.

"Always," Emily reassured with a smile, pulling the teen into a hug, knowing she wouldn't get a chance to give Alex a proper hug when she dropped her off at school.

"I love you," Alex whispered, hugging Emily a little tighter, wanting to ensure that the older woman understood how she felt about her before she left.

"I love you too," Emily replied emotionally, eyes watering as the pair pulled apart. "I love you so much," she said again placing a kiss on the teen's forehead.

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"Boston PD needs our help," JJ stated as the team gathered in the conference room later that morning. "In the past 2 months these men were all found in various locations throughout the city," she explained bringing up photos of 3 men, all white, looking to be in their late thirties.

"Cause of death?" Rossi asked.

"Blunt force trauma to the head," JJ said. "And all 3 men look to have been beaten post mortem," she explained, brining up photos of the beaten bodies, all laying in their boxers.

"He's taking their clothes," Reid pointed out unnecessarily.

"Could be trying to emasculate them," Emily chimed in. "I mean they all look to be in pretty good shape physically. The unsub probably wanted to strip them of their dignity."

"Well another victim was found early yesterday morning," JJ continued, bringing up another picture. "Jonathan Hayes was found in nothing but a pair of boxers, beaten to death with an unknown object."

"He changed his m.o.," Morgan pointed out. "Rather than just hitting them in the back of the head, he's escalated to beating them until they succumb to their injuries."

"Could be that he wasn't getting enough satisfaction from beating them when they were already dead," Reid explained.

"Well whatever it is, Boston definitely has a serial on their hands," Hotch said, standing up and grabbing his file. "Wheels up in 30."

The team immediately began to disperse, each grabbing their files before heading towards their respective desks to get ready to head to the airstrip. Emily lingered behind as JJ began shutting down the projector.

"You want a ride to the airstrip?" Emily asked when JJ turned around to gather up her files.

"Yeah sure," JJ replied with a smile. "How'd it go this morning?" she then asked, having noticed that Emily looked a little sad when she walked in that morning.

"You know I think I'm having a harder time with it than she is," Emily admitted.

"She'll be okay," JJ assured, reaching out and rubbing her hand down her friend's back. "And you'll get used to being away eventually."

"I know,' Emily said with a sigh. "I just keep imagining her having a nightmare and I'm not there for her."

"I thought she was doing better with the nightmares?" JJ asked, as they waited for the elevator.

"She is. She's doing a lot better," Emily replied. "I just don't want my leaving to make things harder on her. I know she's really worried about me."

"Well I think you just need to trust that she's in good hands, and she'll come to you if she needs you," JJ said with an encouraging smile.

"I know," Emily relented. "You know she told me she loves me today," Emily told JJ, a smile spreading across her face.

"That's great Em," JJ said, reaching out to squeeze her friend's hand, loving how happy the brunette looked.

"I honestly don't think I've ever been happier in my life," Emily replied, giving JJ's hand one last squeeze before the pair exited the elevator, on their way to bring down another bad guy.

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When the team touched down in Boston, they all paired off, heading towards their respective assignments that Hotch handed out on the plane. JJ and Reid were headed for the police station, where Reid would work on the geographic profile and JJ would talk to some of the victims' families. Hotch and Morgan were going to the latest crime scene to see if they could get anything from it, while Rossi and Emily would travel to the Coroner's office to see the bodies of the last two victims.

"So how are you feeling about being back?" Rossi asked as he drove their SUV, looking towards Emily in the passenger's seat.

"Honestly?" Emily asked. "A little nervous. I kind of feel like I did on my first case with the team."

"That's understandable," Rossi replied. "It has been more than a month. But don't worry Bella, you'll fall right back into it, just like you never left."

"I hope it's that easy," Emily replied, feeling slightly worried about her ability to stay focused on the case when she couldn't seem to keep her mind off Alex.

The Coroner's office wasn't far from the airport, so it wasn't long before the pair arrived, immediately exiting the car and making their way in to meet the Coroner.

"Agents Rossi and Prentiss, BAU," Rossi introduced, shaking hands with the tall, dark haired man in his late 50s.

"Frank Bellfort," the man replied. "I have the bodies of Jonathan Hayes and Tyler Mackie waiting for you," he explained, leading the pair over to where both victims' bodies were lying on tables.

"Jonathan Hayes' injuries are significantly more severe compared to Mackie's," Emily said, looking over both bodies. "Did the other two victims look similar to Mackie?"

"Yes," Frank replied. "In fact I would say that the injuries were practically identical up until Hayes here. It's like the guy just went nuts."

"That's probably because Hayes was still alive while he was being beaten, unlike the other three victims," Rossi explained. "Probably had to work harder in order to keep Hayes down; repeatedly hitting him until he finally lost consciousness."

"So he kills the first three men for whatever reason, by hitting them in the back of the head, then beats them when they're already dead," Emily said, stating all they knew about their unsub. "Not completely satisfied, he escalates to literally beating Jonathan Hayes to death, and judging by the amount of bruising and injuries on Hayes, he definitely enjoyed himself."

"Which means he's going to do it again," Rossi said. "And soon."

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The team all met up at the police station, going over what everyone found before interviewing other friends and family members of the victims, looking for any overlap between the 4 men who had been killed.

"Alright what do we have?" Hotch asked as the team once again gathered in one of the station's conference rooms later that day.

"All the victims are in their late 30s, all married, no children, and all extremely fit," Morgan began.

"All the families said the victims were avid gym goers," JJ pointed out. "And they all played some form of recreational sport."

"These were all strong, men," Emily said. "They would have been able to handle themselves in a fight, meaning they must not have seen the unsub coming."

"Also means they didn't view the unsub as a threat," Rossi added. "Their guards were down."

"Could be that the unsub isn't all that fit. He's probably small, and most likely the same age as our victims," Morgan said.

"He probably feels emasculated by these men, might have felt this way his whole life," Emily said.

"Reid how does our geographic profile look?" Hotch asked, turning his attention towards the young genius, who stood up and made his way over to his map.

"All four men were found within this circle," Reid said pointing to the red circle he had drawn on the map. "All four also live within these parameters, which could mean the unsub follows them for some time before he kills them."

"Where is he choosing his victims though?" Rossi questioned.

"Between the 4 men they were members of 3 different gyms, Hayes and our second victim Eathan Jacobs, both members of the same gym," Reid explained. "All 3 gyms are within this circle as well. Considering how important fitness was to these men, I would say it's likely that the unsub find his victims there."

"Morgan, call Garcia and have her get any information she can on members of all 3 gyms," Hotch ordered. "It's a long shot, but have her see if there's anyone who comes up as a member of all 3. We'll go to the gyms tomorrow and talk to the workers there, see if they can tell us anymore about our victims. We'll present the profile in the morning." He finished, dismissing the team for the night.

Morgan went to call Garcia, while everyone else gathered their files, waiting for Morgan to return so they could head to the hotel.

"Garcia will have the search done before we head out in the morning," Morgan said a few minutes later when he returned to the conference room. "She also said our hotel is pretty booked up, so we'll be doubling up again."

"Alright well we might as well take 3 cars back so we can head to each gym in pairs tomorrow before we come back here," Hotch said. "Everyone should get some rest."

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"You want to order room service when we get back?" JJ asked Emily on their drive to the hotel, the blonde driving while Emily text Alex to see if she could call her from the passenger's seat.

"That sounds good," Emily replied. "I just want to get out of these clothes and get in a nice comfy, warm, bed."

"Well we're staying at a hotel, so I doubt the bed will be as comfortable as your bed, but I'm sure it'll be warm," JJ laughed.

"Ugh, I so didn't miss hotel beds," Emily replied with a laugh, just as her phone began to ring. "It's Alex," she said before picking up. "Hey kid."

"Hey," Alex replied happily. "How goes it in Boston?"

"Well it's going," Emily replied, not wanting to go into detail with her teenager. "How was school?"

"It was good," the teen replied. "I got an A on that algebra test I took last week and my English teacher told me I did really well on my paper."

"That's great sweetie!" Emily replied with a smile. "How's everything at the Hastings?"

"It's good," Alex said. "Spencer had debate team after school today so Melissa brought me home so I could get my homework done, and then we all had dinner."

"I hope you're being polite," Emily said. "Don't forget to say thank you."

"I know," Alex laughed. "Are you done working for the night?"

"I am," Emily replied. "I'm just heading back to the hotel with JJ now."

"Oh HI JJ," Alex yelled loud enough for JJ to hear; Emily pulling the phone away from her ear with a laugh.

"Hi Alex," JJ called back when Emily held the phone towards her.

"What are your plans for the rest of the night?" Emily asked.

"I think we're just going to watch some T.V," the young brunette explained. "Spencer still has some homework to finish up, so we probably won't do much."

"Well that sounds like a good plan," the Profiler said. "Well we're just pulling in to the hotel, so I better get going," she said, wishing she could keep the teen on the line longer. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Alex replied. "Well…be safe,"

"I will," Emily replied. "And you be good."

"I will," Alex said, her smile evident in her voice. "Love you."

"Love you too," Emily replied, smiling as she hung up the phone.

"Well don't you look happy," JJ said, looking over and seeing the goofy grin on her friend's face.

"I told you, I am," Emily replied, still smiling. "I have an amazing kid."

"Yes you do," JJ agreed with a smile of her own, loving this new side of her best friend.

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JJ checked everyone into their room, passing out keys before they all headed towards the elevator, making their way to the 3rd floor where all their rooms were.

"Reid and I are gonna check out the diner down the street, anyone want to come?" Morgan asked when they were all in the elevator.

"I need to call Haley," Hotch declined.

"I'm meeting an old friend," Rossi said, checking a message on his phone.

"A female friend?" Morgan asked with a laugh.

"Maybe," Rossi replied, his attention never leaving his phone.

"What about you ladies? You two going to accompany me and Pretty Boy here?" Morgan asked, turning his attention towards Emily and JJ who were standing at the back of the elevator.

"No thanks," Emily replied. "I'm going to stick with room service."

"Me too," JJ agreed just as the elevator reached their floor, and the team got off, all heading towards their separate rooms.

"Well if anyone changes their minds you know where to find us," Morgan called out as JJ swiped their keycard to get into their room.

"He's probably worried about having to listen to Reid spout off facts all through dinner," Emily laughed as JJ stepped aside to let her in.

"Probably," JJ laughed, following the brunette into the room. "You know he claims Reid quotes statistics in his sleep…" JJ continued, walking right into Emily, having not noticed that the brunette had stopped walking. "Em what the….oh," she said looking up to see that Emily was staring at the single queen-sized bed that resided in the room.

"Is this some kind of joke?" Emily asked, closing her eyes and reopening them, willing another bed to appear.

"Well Garcia did say the hotel was pretty full," JJ replied. "This must be all they had left."

"Do you think all our rooms are like this?" Emily asked.

"For Morgan's sake I really hope not," JJ laughed, imagining Reid and Morgan being forced to share a bed. "You're okay with this right? I mean it's not a big deal."

"What?" Emily asked, clearly lost in thought. "Oh yeah it's fine," she replied, really not feeling fine. "It's not like we've never shared a bed before."

"Exactly," JJ smiled, putting her bag down on the left side of the bed, knowing Emily usually slept on the right. "I promise not to hog the covers as long as you promise not to kick me."

"Deal," Emily laughed, willing herself not to over think this situation.

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

JJ and Emily spent the rest of the night, relaxing, both taking showers before they ordered dinner and chose a mindless movie to enjoy for the night. JJ had fallen asleep before the movie ended, Emily spending the remainder of the movie watching the blonde sleep, in awe of her friend's beauty. When the movie finally ended the brunette decided she better get some rest, turning off the TV before lying down next to the blonde, who seemed to gravitate towards her warmth, curling up a little bit closer to Emily in her sleep. Emily watched JJ for a little bit longer until her eyes would no longer stay open, allowing sleep to take her.

The pair had been asleep for a few hours when Emily's phone began to ring waking both women from their peaceful slumber. Emily began to blindly reach for her phone, while JJ groaned from beside her, turning over and burying her face into her pillow.

"Hello?" Emily answered, to tired to check who was calling.

"Emily?" Came the quiet reply, as the caller sniffed, clearly crying.

"Alex?" Emily asked, sitting up now fully awake, hearing her daughter crying on the other end of the phone. "Honey what happened? What's wrong?"

At the brunette's panicked tone, JJ quickly sat up, turning on the bedside lamp, looking over at her friend to find her gripping her phone tightly, looking anxious.

"I…I had a nightmare," Alex sniffed quietly. "I'm sorry…I didn't…I didn't want to call but…but I needed…"

"I know honey, I know," Emily interrupted, wishing she wasn't so far away from the teen at this moment. "It's okay, I told you, you can call anytime."

"I needed to hear your voice," Alex said, her breathing beginning to calm down. "I just couldn't shake the dream."

"Do you want to tell me about it?" Emily asked, meeting JJ's concerned eyes, reaching out and grabbing her friend's hand.

Emily listened as the teen told her about her dream, all the while JJ held onto her hand, drawing comforting circles on her palm. The longer she talked, the better Alex began to sound, reaching the end of the dream, explaining that she had run to Spencer's bathroom, so as not to wake her current roommate.

"Are you okay?" Emily asked when the teen had fallen quiet.

"I think so," Alex replied. "Sorry I woke you, I just needed to know you were okay."

"You don't have to apologize for that," Emily assured her. "I'm glad you called."

"I should probably get back to bed," Alex said, sounding very much like hanging up was the last thing she wanted to do. "I don't want to wake Spencer up."

"Okay, well you call me if you need me," Emily replied.

"I will."

"I love you kiddo," Emily said, her voice thick with emotion.

"Love you too," Alex replied quietly before hanging up.

"Is she okay?" JJ asked when Emily hung up, releasing the brunette's hand in order to rub her friend's back comfortingly.

"I think so," Emily replied, sounding exhausted. "She had a nightmare, she just wanted to make sure I was okay."

"And are you?" JJ asked. "Okay?"

"Yeah," Emily replied, shaking her head, while JJ continued to rub circles on her back. "I don't know. I just feel like I'm making the wrong choice. Like maybe I should have found another job. One that doesn't send my teenager into a panic."

"Hey, Alex has been through a lot," JJ said. "She's having a hard time, but she'll be okay, you guys just have to keep talking to each other like you are. You aren't making the wrong choice."

"I hope you're right," Emily said, looking up to meet JJ's gaze.

"Trust me, I am," JJ joked, a mischievous glint apparent in her eyes.

Emily laughed, her brown eyes locking with blue, as all her worries seemed to melt away under the gaze of the blonde in front of her. Both women were suddenly serious, their focus on nothing but each other's eyes, both lost in the moment. It wasn't until JJ let her eyes drift to the brunette's lips that the pair began to move, a magnetic like force pulling them towards each other until their lips finally met.


	13. Chapter 13

**Hey Guys!**

**So I am so sorry that this took so long! Life has just been getting in the way lately (working 3 jobs really sucks), so finding time to write has been difficult!**

**I would like to say sorry in advance because I know this chapter isn't going to go exactly the way that most of you hope, but rest assured I have a plan, and I promise it won't take long to get there! So please stick with me!**

**Also I'm struggling with writing about the cases, so this one is kind of rushed, but necessary for what I want to happen! **

**I hope that you'll enjoy this chapter, and I hope that you guys aren't too disappointed!**

**Thanks so much for reading!**

**-J**

**Chapter 13**

The second that their lips met it was like everything else melted away, both women focused on nothing but the feeling of the other's lips. Emily let her hand tangle into blonde locks, pulling JJ impossibly closer, her other hand grabbing a fistful of the blonde's shirt. JJ's tongue swept across the brunette's bottom lip, seeking entrance that was immediately granted, their tongues meeting, exploring each other's mouths, as both women held each other together.

It was unclear whose throat the moan escaped from, but the sound broke the spell, snapping the women out of the trance they seemed to be in, both pulling away; Emily still clutching onto JJ's shirt tightly.

Both women were out of breath, looks of panic mirrored in their faces, both unsure of what had just come over them.

"Oh God, Em…" JJ began, eyes wide.

"I'm so sorry…" Emily interrupted, letting go of the blonde's shirt and standing up from the bed.

"No, it was…" JJ tried again.

"I didn't…I…oh God…" Emily panicked, bolting for the bathroom, quickly shutting the door behind her.

"Oh God," Emily whispered to herself, leaning up against the sink, unable to even look at herself in the mirror. "What the hell did I do?"

The brunette turned away from the mirror, slowly dragging herself down to sit on the floor, resting her forehead against her knees. _What the hell were you thinking Emily? You basically jumped your best friend while you're working for God's sake. Now what? What am I going to do? I can't go back out there! _Emily berated, willing herself not to cry.

A similar scene was also unfolding in the bedroom, where JJ was sitting on the bed, her head in her hands, her eyes blurry with unshed tears. _Oh God what did I do? I just kissed my best friend! I just kissed my best friend, who's probably never going to speak to me again,_ JJ thought to herself, a few tears falling into her hands.

The pair continued to panic, neither moving from their places for the next 20 minutes, both too embarrassed to try talking to the other, unsure of what they were supposed to do considering they were currently sharing a room. Just as Emily began to consider sleeping on the bathroom floor and then sneaking out as early as possible, she heard her cell phone ringing from the other side of the door.

"Shit," Emily hissed, torn between not wanting to face JJ, and not wanting to miss the call in case it was Alex calling back.

Her concern for Alex winning out, the brunette came out of the bathroom, seeing JJ still sitting on the bed, unable to look up, afraid of what she would see written on the blonde's face.

"Prentiss," Emily answered, seeing from the called I.D that it was Morgan calling.

"Hey Princess," Morgan greeted. "Another body was just discovered. Hotch wants us to get over there before they move it."

"Alright," Emily replied, looking at the clock to see that it was just after 4 in the morning. "I'll meet you outside your room in ten minutes."

"Sure thing," Morgan replied before hanging up.

"What happened?" JJ asked, attempting to keep her emotions out of her voice.

"There's been another murder," Emily replied, moving to grab a change of clothes out of her go-bag. "I'm heading there with Morgan," she said before heading back into the bathroom to get dressed.

When the brunette came back into the room a few minutes later, she still wouldn't look up at JJ, once again heading straight for her bag, rummaging through it to find her jacket.

"Em…," JJ finally called out, unable to take the silence, her sadness evident in her voice.

"Please Jen, not now," Emily interrupted, finally looking up, her eyes pleading with the blonde. "Please."

"Okay," JJ relented, recognizing the fear in the brunette's eyes. "Be safe," she said sadly.

"I will," Emily whispered before quickly leaving the room.

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JJ spent the rest of the morning tossing and turning, unable to shut off her mind long enough to fall back asleep. Knowing that Hotch would probably want to hold a press conference soon, the blonde decided to just get up and begin getting ready for the day, figuring one of the other agents would probably be up soon to head to one of the victim's former gyms with her.

She got ready slowly, still thinking about Emily, something which was immensely frustrating, as the more she thought about it, the more she wanted to curl up in a ball and cry. JJ knew that there was no way Emily was going to talk to her about what happened. The brunette was famous for compartmentalizing and putting up walls, so JJ knew that it was going to take a lot of work to get Emily Prentiss to open up to her.

_I've ruined the best friendship that I have, _JJ thought to herself, tears once again filling her eyes.

Needing to talk to someone, the blonde quickly grabbed her cell phone, hitting speed dial 3, hoping she would get an answer despite the early hour.

"This better be important," Penelope answered sleepily after the fourth ring.

"It's only 5:30. Hotch said I didn't have to be in until 7:30," she continued, sounding barely awake. "I like sleep."

"I kissed Emily," JJ blurted out, jumping straight to it.

"Excuse me?" Garcia replied, suddenly sounding very much awake. "I'm sorry I'm going to need you to repeat that because I could have sworn you just said you kissed Emily."

"Penelope," JJ whined, not wanting to repeat herself.

"Oh my GOD!" The technical analyst squealed, forcing JJ to pull the phone away from her ear. "Oh my God! How was it? Was it amazing? I bet it was good, I mean Emily looks like she would be a good kisser; she's got such nice lips. What kind of kiss are we talking about anyways? I mean was it…"

"Penelope!" JJ shouted, cutting the blonde off. "I'm kind of freaking out here."

"What? Why?" Garcia replied sounding confused.

"Oh I don't know, maybe because I just stuck my tongue down my best friend's throat," JJ replied sarcastically.

"Oh so there was tongue?!"

"Pen," JJ whined again, trying to keep her friend focused on the problem at hand here.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Garcia replied. "I just don't see the problem here sunshine. I mean I've seen the way that woman looks at you. And the way you look at her. AND I'd have to be blind not to see all the flirty glances, and all the touching. I just don't see how this is a bad thing!"

"Because Pen, she's my best friend!"

"So!"

"So, she's my best friend and I kissed her and she looked at me all horrified and then ran off into the bathroom and could barely look at me when she came back out," JJ practically shouted, sadness laced in her voice. "She's probably never going to talk to me again."

"Oh Sugar, we're talking about Emily here," Garcia replied. "Of course she freaked out. But she was kissing you back right?"

"Well yeah,' JJ replied. "I mean it definitely wasn't one sided."

"So I'm sure she just panicked, kind of like you are now, and didn't know what to do," Garcia assured her friend. "So in typical Emily fashion she put up her walls to protect herself because she's afraid, just like you are."

"So what do I do?" JJ asked sadly.

"You need to talk to her Pumpkin," Garcia replied. "You need to fight your way past those Prentiss walls and tell her how you feel."

"What if I don't know how I feel?" The blonde asked honestly.

"Honey, I think you know how you feel," Garcia sighed. "I know you're scared, but you need to be honest with her."

"What if she doesn't feel the same way?"

"Oh Sugar, trust me, you have nothing to worry about," Garcia replied. "Anyone with eyes can see that woman is crazy about you, she's just too scared to admit it. She just needs a little push."

"I guess you're right," JJ relented, feeling nervous.

"Of course I'm right," Garcia replied. "Now tell me, how was it?"

"Garcia," JJ laughed, embarrassed.

"Aw come on Jayje," Garcia whined. "You can't call me before sunrise and not even tell me what kind of kisser our Princess is."

"Ugh fine!" JJ laughed. "It was amazing okay? Probably the best kiss I've ever had. Happy?"

"OH I KNEW IT!" Garcia replied happily. "Oh I am so happy for you!"

"I'm hanging up on you now," JJ replied, holding back her laughter at her friend's antics.

"Good luck!" Garcia called out before JJ ended the call, sighing as she thought about the conversation she needed to have with Emily.

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

After spending some time at their newest crime scene Emily and Morgan made their way to the first victim's regular gym, talking with several of the workers there to ask them about the victim's regular routine. They also asked whether there was a frequenter who had spent time watching their victim, who may have been scrawny, or perhaps out of shape. One of the women who worked there explained that there was a man who comes in from time to time using a day pass, who they often catch watching some of the other members, often making them uncomfortable. The woman was able to give them nothing but a vague description, explaining that their cameras had been broken for quite some time now.

Hoping that the others would have some better luck, the pair made their way back to the SUV, deciding they would get some coffee before heading back to the station to meet the team.

"So are you going to tell me what's up?" Morgan asked when they got back in the car.

"What do you mean?" Emily asked sounding confused.

"Oh come on Emily you've been acting strange all morning," Morgan said. "You kept spacing out at the crime scene and you barely said two words in there. It just doesn't seem like your head is in it today."

"That's not true," Emily argued even though she knew Morgan had a point. Morgan simply raised his eyebrow in response, as Emily sighed, realizing that Morgan wasn't going to let this drop. "Alright something happened this morning before you called, and I guess I'm just a little distracted."

"This morning before I called?" Morgan asked, thinking about what could have possibly happened that early in the morning. "Something happened with JJ?" He asked.

"Well kind of," Emily asked, blushing, something which was uncharacteristic of the brunette.

"Ooooooh," Morgan smiled in understanding. "You finally kissed her didn't you?"

"What? How did you? Oh God," Emily stuttered, hiding her face in her hands.

"Oh come on Prentiss, it doesn't take a profiler to see how you feel about JJ," Morgan said, as he drove towards the coffee shop. "I've just been waiting for the two of you to figure it out. I take it, it didn't go well?"

"I completely panicked," Emily confessed, looking up. "I realized what was happening and I just bolted. And now I don't know what to do."

"You need to talk to her is what you need to do," Morgan replied. "JJ cares about you, Princess, and if you just talk to her I'm sure you two could have something great. But you can't push her away. You need to be open."

"But…but what if it ruins our friendship?" Emily asked. "She's my best friend. I don't want to lose that."

"Prentiss, trust me okay," Morgan replied. "You're not going to lose JJ. You just need to let her in."

Emily didn't reply, thinking about what Morgan said, her thoughts interrupted by the ringing of Derek's cell phone.

"Morgan," Derek answered, listening to the voice on the other end of the phone. "Alright will do," he replied, hanging up. "Sorry Princess, coffee's gonna have to wait. We need to meet the team, we've got something."

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

When Morgan and Emily arrived at the station they found the team waiting for them in one of the conference rooms.

"What do we got?" Morgan asked, as Emily slipped into the room quietly, going to stand by Rossi, successfully avoiding JJ's gaze. The brunette may understand that she needs to talk to JJ but there was no way she was going to do it right now.

"Rossi and JJ talked to someone at the gym where Hayes and Jacobs worked out, describing our unsub and we have a video," Hotch explained, bringing up the video on the laptop in front of them.

"This man apparently visits the gym every couple weeks, always using a day pass," Rossi explained, as the video brought up a rather skinny looking man in his thirties. "We don't have a name, but we do have him visiting the gym on the weeks that both Jacobs and Hayes were killed."

"We have Garcia running facial recognition, and she's going through video from the third gym to see if the same guy comes up," Reid explained. "Did you two find anything?"

"Cameras were down at the gym, but one of the workers gave us a rather vague description that would fit the man in your video," Emily explained, being sure to include herself in the discussion so that none of the other profilers noticed her distraction the way Morgan did.

Just then Hotch's phone began to ring, the unit chief answering right away.

"What do you have Garcia?"

"I've got a name," Garcia answered quickly. "Marcus Shea. After combing through the video from the third gym, I found him there the same week our third victim was killed."

"Do we know anything about him?" JJ asked.

"Well based on his high school experience I would say this could definitely be your guy," Garcia replied. "Shea dropped out of high school in his Sophomore year after he was attacked in the gym locker room by a bunch of football players who then tossed him out into the hallway in his underwear. He was homeschooled after that."

"He's built up a lot of anger since then," Emily pointed out.

"And that would explain why he's stripping his victims," Reid added.

"Garcia do we have an address?" Hotch asked.

"Already sent it to your phones," Garcia replied.

"Alright we need to get over there," Hotch said. "Everyone needs vests, we should be prepared for him to resist."

The team began to file out of the room, JJ hanging back, grabbing Emily by the arm, wanting a chance to talk to the brunette.

"Jayje, please," Emily said as soon as the rest of the team was out of earshot.

"I know okay, I know," JJ replied. "I just need to know that we're okay. We're okay right?"

"Of course," Emily replied with a sigh, even though she didn't really feel like they were that fine. "I…I just can't do this right now."

"Okay, but when this is over?" The blonde asked with pleading eyes.

"When this is over," Emily replied with a nod, suddenly hoping this case would last just a little bit longer.

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

The team gathered around Marcus Shea's house, Morgan, Emily and JJ at the front while Rossi, Hotch and Reid covered the back. Shea's car was in the driveway so they were expecting the man to be home, aware that if he was indeed their man, which they were sure he was, he likely wouldn't go down without a fight.

Morgan counted down silently, knowing Hotch was doing the same in the back.

"Marcus Shea, FBI," Morgan shouted, pounding heavily on the door. Giving it a few seconds, the agent then kicked the door in, entering the house and going left, while Emily went straight and JJ took the right.

Clearing the rooms on the main floor, Hotch made his way towards the basement; with Reid and Rossi following close behind while Morgan led the way upstairs, both women behind him. When they reached the top of the stairs, the agents found two doors closed, one on the left side of the hall and one of the right. Pointing at the women, Morgan then pointed to the door on the right, heading towards the door on the left himself.

Counting down, both doors were thrown open, Emily entering the room first, while JJ followed close behind, neither woman seeing anyone in their immediate sight. It wasn't until Emily turned to her left, while JJ looked to the right, that the brunette noticed the other presence in the room, a man coming out quickly from behind the wardrobe, a baseball bat in hand.

Before the profiler had a chance to even register what was happening, she felt rather than saw the baseball bat connecting with the side of her head. The last thing the brunette heard before she blacked out, being the sound of her blonde friend calling out her name.

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**I'm sorry I just really love cliffhangers…well except maybe the cliffhanger from the last CM episode! That was just cruel!**


	14. Chapter 14

**HEY!**

**So I've had a crazy busy, but crazy good week and I'm excited to share this chapter with all of you! I really hope you love it and I can't wait to keep writing the rest of this because I'm really happy with where I'm going. I will do my best to post as often as I can!**

**Thanks for reading!**

**-J**

**Chapter 14**

"Emily!" JJ yelled, seeing the brunette fall to the ground from the force of the bat. "Freeze! Put the bat down!" She then yelled, training her gun on Shea.

Hearing JJ's shouts, Morgan came into the room, his gun at the ready.

"Marcus Shea, put the bat down," Morgan yelled. "It's over man, just put it down."

Shea seemed to consider his options for a moment, looking from Emily, to Morgan, to JJ, realizing that there was really nothing he could do other than comply with Morgan's demands.

"Drop the bat, and step away from Agent Prentiss," Morgan demanded, his tone firm.

Dropping the bat, Shea took a step away from Emily, as Morgan came towards him, his gun still aimed at the man. JJ waited until Morgan put away his gun and took out his cuffs before she put her own gun back in its holster, rushing towards Emily who was groaning in pain.

"Em, are you okay," JJ asked in panic, kneeling down beside the brunette who was trying to sit up. "Don't move we'll call an ambulance," she said, grabbing the brunette by the shoulder, attempting to keep her where she was.

"No...no I'm f-fine," Emily groaned, bringing her hand up to touch the place where the bat had connected with her head.

"Em you're bleeding," JJ said quietly, watching as Emily touched the gash on her forehead. "You probably need stitches."

"No, no hospitals," Emily begged, groaning as she saw the blood left on her hand from her forehead.

"Sorry Prentiss, you know the rules," Hotch said as he came in, neither woman even noticing that Morgan had already escorted Shea out of the room. "I already called the ambulance, you need to get checked out. JJ go with her, I'll have Rossi come get you guys when you're ready."

"Yes sir," JJ replied with a nod, turning back to Emily to see that the brunette was now attempting to stand up. "Emily, you need to wait for the paramedics."

"Need some air," Emily moaned, steadying herself as a wave of dizziness hit her when she stood up. "Can you just…just help me please?"

"Alright, just lean on me," JJ said, standing up next to the taller woman and allowing her to lean into her. "I've got you."

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"Where is the damn doctor?" Emily asked more than an hour later as she sat in the emergency room with JJ beside her.

"Em you need to relax," JJ replied. "He said he's let you go as soon as he checked out your head scan."

"Well what the hell is taking him so long?" Emily practically whined. "I'm perfectly fine, I just want to get out of this place."

"Emily you just got stitches and you have a concussion," JJ reminded the brunette. "It wouldn't hurt you to just relax for a little bit longer."

"It might," Emily replied grumpily, reminding the blonde of a small child who wasn't getting their way.

"You know since we have no where to go for a while, maybe we should talk," JJ suggested, feeling anxious about discussing their little make-out session from the night before, but not wanting to ignore it.

"About what?" Emily asked trying to sound innocent.

"I think you know what," JJ replied, raising an eyebrow at her friend.

"Jen, I really don't think now is the time to have this discussion," Emily said, suddenly avoiding the blonde's stern gaze.

"Well when then Emily?" JJ asked sounding annoyed.

"I don't know later I guess," Emily replied. "I mean I said we'd talk about it later."

"You know what fine," JJ replied standing up. "We'll just keep pretending like nothing happened," she said angrily, starting to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Emily asked, feeling bad for upsetting the blonde.

"The waiting room," JJ replied shortly. "Find me when you're ready."

Emily watched as JJ stormed off, wishing she could just call out and convince her to stay and talk to her like she knew JJ wanted her to. But Emily couldn't do that, because as much as Emily enjoyed the kiss that the pair had shared the night before, she was scared. She was scared of opening herself up. She was scared to let JJ in. She was scared to admit her real feelings, and she was scared of being rejected.

Emily Prentiss was just plain scared.

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After the doctor told her she could leave, Emily found JJ in the waiting room, still looking rather angry. The blonde called Rossi who came to pick them up, bringing them back to the police station so the pair could help the team finish up with the case.

When they arrived back at the station Morgan was still interviewing Marcus Shea, while Hotch and Reid were working on paperwork to help close up the case.

"So it turns out you were pretty lucky Emily," Reid said when he saw the brunette walk into the station. "We found the crowbar Shea used to kill all the victims. That probably would have hurt a lot more than the wooden bat did."

"Lucky me," Emily replied sitting down and rubbing her temples, wishing the pain pill she took would kick in. "Did he confess?"

"Took Morgan a while but he finally cracked him," Reid replied. "They're going through each murder now."

"JJ I'd like you to hold a press conference with the Police Chief," Hotch said directing his attention to the media liaison. "Let everyone know that we've got this guy off the street."

"Yes sir," JJ replied, heading off to get to work.

"Emily if you want to go back to the hotel we should be fine without you," Hotch said turning back to Emily. "You can get some rest until we're done here. I plan to have us fly back tonight."

"I'd rather just stay and help out here if that's alright sir," Emily replied.

"Alright, but don't overdo it or anything," Hotch said. "Just help Reid out."

"Yes sir," Emily replied, taking some of the paperwork from Reid, while they waited for Morgan to finish interviewing Shea.

It was over an hour later when Morgan finally came out of the interview room, stopping to talk to Hotch and Rossi before making his way over to Emily and Reid.

"Hey Princess, how's the head?" He asked.

"Could be worse," Emily replied. "It's just a couple stitches and a slight concussion."

"Well it's a good thing you've got such a hard head," Morgan joked, pulling something out of his pocket. "You dropped this at Shea's house," he explained, tossing Emily her cell phone.

"I wondered what happened to that," Emily said, catching the object and immediately turning on the screen. "Oh shit," she said, seeing the messages that she had missed.

"What's wrong?" Reid asked.

"Alex has text me like 10 times, and I miss 3 calls," Emily explained, getting up to go outside so she could call Alex.

Emily hit the speed dial for Alex, hearing the phone ring once before Alex's frantic voice answered.

"Emily?!" She asked, sounding worried.

"Alex I am so sorry," Emily replied, feeling guilty at the panic in the teen's voice.

"Where have you been?" Alex asked, trying to keep her voice calm. "I mean I know you said sometimes you wouldn't be able to reply but it's been hours. I was worried."

"I know honey, I know I'm so sorry," Emily apologized. "There was a bit of an incident at the unsub's house and I must have dropped my phone. Morgan had it and I just got it back from him now."

"What kind of incident?" Alex asked worriedly. "Are you okay?"

"I want you to listen to me okay?" Emily said, wanting to be honest with her daughter, but not wanting to send her into a panic. "I'm perfectly fine, but I got hit in the head with a baseball bat. I got a couple stitches and I have a mild concussion, but I'm absolutely fine."

This confession was met with absolute silence and for a moment Emily had worried that she had dropped the call. Pulling the phone away from her ear, Emily checked the screen to make sure the call was still connected.

"Alex?" Emily asked. "Honey are you still there."

"I'm here," Alex replied quietly.

"I promise that I'm okay," Emily repeated. "I'm so sorry."

"Are you coming home?" Alex asked, trying but failing to hide a sniff, indicating that she was crying.

"We're flying home tonight, but I won't be there until late," Emily replied, feeling guilty.

"Well maybe I should get Spencer's mom to bring me home then," Alex suggested. "That way I'll be there when you get home."

"Oh Sweetie, I would love that, I really would," Emily replied. "But I think you should stay there one more night. We're not going to be able to leave here for another few hours and it'll be so late by the time I get home. I really don't want you to be on your own, especially since I know you're upset. Why don't you stay with Spencer tonight, let her mom bring you to school tomorrow and then I promise you I will be there to pick you up after school."

"But…I mean should you be alone?" Alex argued. "I mean if you have a concussion shouldn't someone be there?"

"I'll be okay," Emily replied. "I'll set an alarm for every hour, it's not my first, you don't need to worry about me. Okay? Can you do that for me?"

"Okay," Alex sighed. "You're really okay though?"

"I'm really okay."

"Okay. Just don't forget to pick me up from school."

"I won't I promise," Emily replied. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah," Alex said quietly. "Sorry I freaked out. I was just worried."

"I know love, we're still getting used to all this," Emily replied. "I will see you at 3pm on the dot tomorrow okay?"

"Okay," Alex said, sounding much calmer. "I love you."

"Love you too kid."

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

It was late when the team finally left Boston, relieved to be able to head home so quickly, but all exhausted, feeling like they had just experienced the longest day of their lives. When they got on the plane everyone quickly found a place to curl up; all hoping to spend the entirety of their trip sleeping. JJ hadn't spoken to Emily the rest of the day, going out of her way to avoid her gaze, so Emily wasn't surprised when the blonde chose a seat away from everyone else on the plane, making it clear that she didn't want to be bothered.

Unable to turn off her mind, Emily spent the whole journey home thinking. Thinking about Alex, thinking about JJ, and thinking about everything that had changed in her life recently. Emily knew she wasn't being fair to JJ, but at this point she no longer knew how to fix the problem that she had so obviously created, not knowing how to talk to the blonde. Emily knew that JJ wanted her to be open with her and talk about everything, but talking had never been Emily's strong suit. The brunette was famous for shutting people out, especially those who she cared about most, afraid of not only hurting them, but of getting hurt herself.

When the plane touched down, Hotch told everyone not to come in until 9:30am, telling Emily to take the next day off, something which the brunette uncharacteristically accepted, knowing she needed to be home to pick Alex up after school.

Turning down a ride from Morgan, Emily got into her car, watching as JJ got into Hotch's car since her own was still parked in the office parking lot because Emily had driven her to the airstrip. Emily drove home faster than normal, grateful for the nearly empty streets, anxious to get home to her bed.

Part of the profiler wished she had let Alex come home, wanting nothing more than to hug her daughter, but also happy that the teen didn't have to deal with her fear on her own.

Dropping her bag as soon as she crossed her threshold, Emily walked straight to the kitchen, pouring herself a glass of water, wishing she could handle something stronger. Leaning up against the island, the brunette looked around her quiet condo, surprised by how strange it felt to come home to an empty apartment. Feeling exhausted, Emily began to drag herself towards the stairs, looking forward to getting a full nights sleep after the early morning wake-up call she had gotten that day.

Just as the brunette reached the bottom of the stairs, there was a soft knock on the front door, stopping the profiler mid-step. Wondering who would visiting at such a late hour, Emily made her way towards the door, checking the peephole to find a blonde head of hair waiting on the other side.

"JJ? What are you doing here?" Emily asked, opening up the door. "It's late."

"I…I just…I…" JJ stuttered, suddenly wishing she had simply gone home like she originally planned before she found herself at her friend's door.

"Jen, what do you want from me?" Emily asked, far too tired to have this conversation.

"You," JJ replied, looking up into dark brown eyes. "I just want you."


	15. Chapter 15

**Happy Criminal Minds Day!**

** I'm super nervous for tonight's finale, so I let myself get lost in my little world in this story, which is much happier. I thoroughly enjoyed writing this chapter and I really hope that all of you will be happy with it.**

**I actually think I'm going to have one more chapter in this particular story, but rest assured I will start writing Part 3 right away (as long as you guys will keep reading). I still have lots of ideas, and I'm really enjoying writing about these characters!**

**Hope you all enjoy! And I hope tonight's episode won't be too stressful!**

**-J**

**Chapter 15**

_"You," JJ replied, looking up into dark brown eyes. "I just want you."_

As soon as the words were out of JJ's mouth, Emily's lips were on hers, pulling the blonde further into the condo, shutting the door behind her.

Emily had thought their first kiss was electric, but she quickly realized that, that kiss had been nothing compared to this one, pulling JJ impossibly closer to her as she allowed herself to be pushed up against the wall. Emily deepened the kiss, allowing her hand to travel just underneath JJ's shirt, desperately wanting to explore the blonde's body, but holding herself back. When air finally became an issue the pair pulled apart, JJ resting her forehead against Emily's lightly, keeping the brunette trapped between her and the wall.

"Emily," JJ said quietly, out of breath. "I…I need to know that…that this is what you want too, Em. I need to know that you feel the same."

Emily placed a soft kiss upon the blonde's lip, smiling as she pulled away, looking into the deep blue eyes that she loved so much.

"I want this," Emily replied firmly. "I don't know why it took me so long to realize, but I'm crazy about you Jen. I want this. I want you."

JJ tangled her hand into Emily's dark brown locks, pulling her forward, engaging her in a kiss filled with a passion neither woman had ever experienced before. Emily let her hand travel further up the blonde's back, desperate for the skin-to-skin contact, feeling JJ's hands following a similar path, both still hesitating, knowing that once they crossed the line there was no going back.

Desperate to feel closer to the brunette, JJ pulled away, reaching down to the hem of her own shirt, quickly pulling it off before pulling Emily in for another searing kiss. Emily soon broke the kiss, taking in the sight of the blonde's heaving chest, clad in a blue lace bra.

"God you're beautiful," Emily whispered, kissing the blonde's jaw, before creating a path down her neck, kissing and nipping as JJ began to work on the brunette's buttons.

"God Emily," JJ moaned as the brunette continued her assault on her neck, the blonde desperately fumbling to rid Emily of her shirt. JJ pulled Emily back up to meet her lips, deepening the kiss as she was finally able to undo the last of Emily's buttons.

As soon as Emily's shirt fell off her shoulders and hit the ground, it was as if everything sped up, the pair tripping over each other as they headed towards the stairs, pulling at each other's clothes as they went. Both women lost their pants at the bottom of the stairs, Emily almost falling as she led JJ up the stairs, lips still locked together. The pair each snuck a hand behind the other's back, undoing each other's bras; both letting the straps falls down their arms, releasing identical moans as their naked chests met for the first time.

As they entered the bedroom and allowed themselves to fall softly onto the bed, wearing nothing but their panties, Emily took a moment to pull back, reveling in the beauty that currently lay beneath her.

"Are you sure about this?" Emily asked tentatively, not entirely sure she could even stop now if she tried.

"Absolutely," JJ replied, chest heaving, biting her lip as she took in Emily's naked form.

"So, so beautiful," Emily sighed, kissing down the blonde's chest, as she removed the last bits of material separating them from each other.

The pair spent the next hour intertwined, exploring each other's body with touch and taste, neither fighting for control as they experienced varying forms of pleasure. Bodies tensed in desire, which was released before being built back up again at the hands and mouths of their partner.

It was the early morning hours when the pair finally lay together, exhausted and satiated, JJ's head resting on Emily's shoulder as both women struggled to keep their eyes open.

"You're amazing," Emily whispered, running her hand through messy, blonde locks. "I don't know how I got so lucky."

"I'm the lucky one," JJ replied softly, placing a kiss under the brunette's jaw. "I'm definitely the lucky one."

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

The sound of Emily's front door opening roused the brunette from her sleep, though when she opened her eyes she couldn't quite figure out what had woken her. The profiler smiled happily at the blonde lying in her arms, her head still resting on Emily's shoulder, their legs intertwined beneath the comforter. Emily placed a feather-light kiss on the top on the blonde's head, feeling her eyes drifting shut once again.

"Emily?" Called out Alex's voice, coming from downstairs, Emily's eyes snapping open in alarm.

"Oh shit," Emily said, bolting up and waking up JJ in the process.

"Em?" JJ asked confused, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Alex is here," Emily said, grabbing her robe off the closet door, pulling it on quickly in hopes of intercepting the teen before she made it to the stairs. "Stay here, and find something to put on," Emily said before rushing out the bedroom door which was currently wide open.

"Alex? Honey, what are you doing here?" Emily called as she made her way quickly down the stairs, meeting the teen at the bottom. When she reached the bottom, Emily kicked the pants that lay there to the side, hoping Alex wouldn't notice the extra pair, knowing the teen probably already saw the shirts that lay on the kitchen floor.

"I was worried," Alex said, confused by the panicked look on Emily's face. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"Oh I'm fine," Emily replied, trying to remain calm. "I'm just tired that's all. It's just a couple stitches. Doesn't even hurt," she assured. "How did you get here?"

"Melissa," Alex replied, still suspicious of her mother's behaviour. "Her and Spencer are waiting downstairs to take me to school. I just wanted to see you before we went."

"Well thank you," Emily said, running her hand through the teen's long hair before pulling Alex forward to kiss her forehead. "I'm really okay," she said looking the teen in the eyes to ensure she understood.

"Okay," Alex replied with a small smile. "I better get going then. You're still going to pick me up right?"

"Of course," Emily said, pulling the smaller brunette into a hug, forgetting about the articles of clothing that lay behind her on the stairs.

"Is there someone here?" Alex asked, seeing the two bras that had been discarded on the stairs.

"What? Of course not," Emily replied quickly. "Why would you…" she began before remembering what lay behind her. "I…uh…"

"You know I thought that was JJ's shirt laying on the kitchen floor, but I thought, maybe you borrowed it," Alex said, trying and failing to keep the grin off her face. "But the thing is, I was with JJ when she bought that bra last week."

"I…" Emily began, searching her mind for an excuse, but coming up blank. "Busted," she whispered, much to the teen's amusement. "Jen, you might as well come out," she called up the stairs.

JJ walked sheepishly down the stairs, wearing the longest sweater of Emily's she could find, looking embarrassed.

"Hi," JJ blushed, giving Alex a small wave, standing close behind Emily, nervous about getting to close to the teen since she had been unable to find her underwear in Emily's room.

"Hi there," Alex smirked, trying to control her laughter at the looks on both women's faces. "I guess I didn't need to worry about Emily. Apparently she was in good hands," Alex said, laughing at the shocked expression on Emily's face.

"Alex we uh…" Emily began, unsure of what exactly to say to her 14 year old.

"No need to explain," Alex interrupted, knowing perfectly well what had happened here. "I should really get to school though," Alex said moving to once again hug Emily. "It's about time," she whispered in the taller brunette's ear with a smirk. "JJ I'll uh…hug you when you're a little more clothed."

JJ blushed, shaking her head at the teen's amused grin, relieved to find that Alex wasn't too freaked out about finding her with Emily like this.

"I'll see you after school," Emily said. "Be good."

"Yeah you too," Alex laughed before quickly heading towards the condo door happily. "Love you!"

"Love you too," Emily replied, unable to hold back a laugh as she heard the door shut behind the teen.

Emily turned around to face JJ, taking in the sight of the blonde in nothing but her sweatshirt, a sight which sent goose bumps down her arms.

"Well that went better than I thought it would," JJ said, as Emily moved up a stair to get closer to her.

"Yeah well she kind of suspected this for a while," Emily said brushing JJ's hair behind her ear.

"What?" JJ asked confused.

"She thought we were dating when she met us," Emily explained.

"And why would she think that?" JJ asked as she began playing with the belt holding Emily's robe together.

"Something about the way we look at each other," Emily replied, brushing her thumb against the blonde's cheek. "And because I call you Jen."

"Have I ever told you how much I love it when you call me Jen?" JJ asked, placing a kiss upon the brunette's lips.

Just as Emily was about to deepen the kiss, JJ pulled away, a mischievous grin on her face, as she began to head back up the stairs.

"And where do you think you're going?" Emily asked, admiring the obvious swing in the blonde's step.

"Well some of us have to go to work today," JJ stated, looking at the brunette over her shoulder. "So I'm going to shower," she said, lifting Emily's sweater over her head and dropping it at the top of the stairs.

Emily's jaw fell open, watching in awe as the blonde headed back towards the master suite.

"You coming?" JJ called out to Emily who was still frozen on the stairs.

"Definitely," Emily whispered before running to catch up to the blonde.

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

As tempted, as JJ was to call in sick to work that day, she headed to the office, leaving Emily, who invited the blonde to return to the condo for dinner that night. Emily was supposed to spend the day resting, but instead cleaned up the mess that she and JJ had created the night before, deciding to do some laundry while she had the time.

3pm rolled around quickly, and Emily made sure she arrived at Alex's school early, parking out front while she waited for the teen to get out. Emily was anxious to talk to Alex, wanting to make sure that she was okay with what she had found that morning, though she was pretty certain that the teen was rather pleased about the whole thing.

It was just after 3pm when Alex, Spencer, Olivia and Zoey came walking out of the school, Alex immediately spotting Emily's car, bidding her friends farewell before running towards the vehicle, a grin across her face.

"You know you don't have to look so smug," Emily laughed as the teen buckled herself in.

"Why would I be smug?" Alex asked innocently.

"You know why," Emily replied, shaking her head as she pulled out of the school parking lot.

"Oh you mean because I was right about you and JJ?" Alex laughed happily.

"Technically when you asked me about it there was nothing going on between me and JJ," Emily replied.

"Yeah but I knew you two had feelings for each other," Alex argued. "Therefore I was right."

"Yeah, yeah, okay," Emily said, trying to keep a straight face.

"So are you two like dating now?"

"Honestly, we haven't really talked about it yet," Emily replied biting her lip. "I want us to be though. Are you okay with that?"

"Are you kidding?" Alex scoffed. "Of course I'm okay with that! I was actually kind of disappointed when I found out you guys weren't dating in the first place. I love JJ. I think you guys make a great couple."

"Well that's a relief, because if you didn't dinner would be really awkward tonight," Emily laughed.

"She's coming for dinner?"

"Yep," Emily replied. "She'll be over after work."

"Oh perfect, you should make something Italian. JJ loves Italian," Alex suggested, making Emily laugh.

"That's a good idea," Emily replied with a smile.

"I'm really happy for you Emily," Alex said, looking over at Emily with a big smile on her face.

"I'm really happy too Alex," Emily replied. "I don't think I could be any happier.

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

JJ returned to the condo just after 5pm, as Hotch had let the team go early since they had just gotten off a case. The blonde knocked tentatively, feeling oddly nervous as she waited for one of the brunettes inside to answer. JJ's nerves were quickly lifted as a smiling Emily answered the door, a sight which instantly calmed the blonde.

"Hey," Emily greeted, leaning in to kiss JJ like it was the most natural thing in the world. "You're early."

"Yeah Hotch let us off," JJ replied as she made her way inside. "How's the head?"

"It's fine," Emily said, reaching out to take JJ's hand in hers, craving the contact.

"That's good," JJ replied, smiling as the brunette rubbed circles on the back of her hand. "And how'd it go with Alex?"

"Oh she's over the moon," Emily explained. "Although she did ask me if we were dating."

"Oh yeah? And what did you tell her?" JJ asked, stepping closer to the taller woman.

"That I was working on it," Emily replied, tucking blonde hair behind the media liaison's ear. "So what do you think Jennifer? Are we going to do this thing?"

"I think we most definitely are," JJ replied before moving in to kiss the brunette, who immediately deepened it.

"You know I'm right over here," Alex called out from where she was sitting on the couch playing a video game. "And I know what you two are doing over there."

Laughing the pair pulled apart, Emily shaking her head. "Why don't you go in and sit with my brat over there while I run my laundry back upstairs," Emily suggested. "Dinner should be ready in about half and hour. I made lasagna."

"Sounds perfect," JJ smiled, pecking Emily on the lips once more before going to joining Alex on the couch. "Hey kid, what are you playing?"

"Mario Kart," Alex replied, looking over at the blonde quickly before returning her attention to her game. "It's nice to see you dressed," she added with a laugh.

"Ha Ha," JJ replied, poking the teen in the ribs. "You're hilarious really."

"Thanks," Alex smiled, playing a little bit longer before pausing the game and turning her attention to JJ. "So what exactly are your intentions with Emily, Jennifer?"

"W-what?" JJ asked, a little thrown off.

"Your intentions? With my mother?" The teen repeated, looking serious.

"Um well…um I uh…I care about her very much," JJ stuttered, having not anticipated an interrogation. "My intentions are honourable I swear."

"Oh really? Is that why you spent the night last night," Alex asked, eyebrow raised. "Without your clothes?"

"Uh…" JJ said, at a loss for words, a surprised look on her face. The teen stared JJ down for what felt like forever, a completely serious look on her face, before finally cracking as she began laughing hysterically. "You are such a brat," JJ said shoving the teen, who couldn't stop laughing.

"Oh man, that was way too easy," Alex laughed. "You should see how red your face is."

"Oh you got her good didn't you," Emily said, coming down the stairs, seeing that JJ was blushing and Alex was laughing.

"You knew she was going to do that?" JJ asked looking at Emily in surprise.

"Sorry babe," Emily laughed, sitting down beside the blonde and placing a kiss on her cheek.

"You two are cruel," JJ replied with a pout.

"Don't worry JJ, I do it out of love," Alex said her laughs subsiding as she patted the blonde on the shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah," JJ replied, suppressing a grin. "I'll forgive you after I beat you at this game," she said, snatching the control from the teen's hand.

"Oh you're on," Alex said, getting up to grab the other control.

Emily watched with a smile on her face, JJ reaching out and squeezing her hand before returning her attention to the teen. Emily didn't know what lay ahead for her and JJ, but she could only hope for many more nights just like this.


	16. Chapter 16

**Alright!**

**So this will be the last chapter of this particular story, but have no fear, I've already got the first chapter of story number 3 all planned out (just need to get it written).**

**Thanks to everyone who has been reading, And a HUGE thanks for all the kind reviews that you guys have taken the time to write, it means so much to me, and they have definitely motivated me to keep going!**

**So I hope you enjoy all the cheesiness that this chapter has to offer!**

**-J**

**Chapter 16**

"Emily got hurt while she was away on her case," Alex said, sitting across from Dr. Sullivan early Friday morning. "She was hit in the head with a baseball bat."

"She's okay though?" The doctor asked.

"Yeah," Alex replied. "I was pretty freaked out when I found out. It scares me; thinking about something happening to Emily, but I think I feel better about it now. I mean Emily's tough, I just have to trust that she's going to be okay."

"That's really great Alex," Dr. Sullivan said. "You seem a lot more relaxed about it then you did last week. What else has been going on at home?"

"Emily's seeing someone," Alex answered, a big smile on her face.

"And I take it you like this someone?" Dr. Sullivan asked.

"She's great," Alex replied with a smile, thinking about JJ. "She reminds me a lot of my mom. I mean the whole thing between her and Emily is really new, but I hope it works out. I like spending time with them together."

"That's great Alex," Dr. Sullivan smiled; glad to see such a change in the teen. "You know it's great to see you so happy."

"You know, I didn't think I would be able to feel like this so soon," Alex confessed. "I still think about everything that happened. And it still makes me sad, but every day it gets just a little bit easier. Emily makes it easier."

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

Emily arrived to work late that day, having dropped Alex off at school after her appointment. Hotch had text Emily telling her that he was pushing their morning conference to 10:30am, so she would have time to get in and go over any files she wanted to review with the team.

Emily and JJ had spent the last two days discussing what they wanted to do about telling the team now that they were dating, not wanting to keep secrets, but afraid of what telling would mean for the future of the team. After much deliberation it was decided that the pair would talk to Hotch first before informing the rest of the team, hoping that the unit chief would be understanding.

Arriving at the BAU, Emily saw Reid and Morgan, working quietly at their desks in the bullpen, neither man noticing Emily arriving. Knowing that JJ hoped to talk to Hotch before the team gathered that morning, Emily headed up to JJ's office.

"Hey gorgeous," Emily greeted, poking her head into the media liaison's office.

"Hey yourself," JJ replied, looking up from the file she was currently engrossed in with a smile. "How'd everything go today?"

"Great," Emily smiled. "I think Alex comes out a little happier every week."

"That's great," JJ grinned. "So are you ready to do this?" She asked, suddenly looking nervous.

"I am," Emily replied confidently, walking further into the office, seeing the anxiety on the other woman's face. "You were right yesterday, we need to be honest with them. Plus I'm willing to accept whatever consequence comes our way if it means I get to be with you."

"And if Hotch says one of us has to leave?" JJ questioned.

"Then I will take a position in another department," Emily replied without hesitation.

"You'd really do that?"

"In a heartbeat," Emily replied, bringing a smile to JJ's face. "I told you, I'm in this Jen. I'm all in," she said, coming around the desk, just as the blonde stood up.

Before Emily could lean in for a kiss, JJ put up a hand to stop her. "Cameras," she explained, nodding towards the corner of the office.

"Right," Emily replied, having forgotten where they were for a moment. "Later then."

"Definitely," JJ smiled. "So lets go do this."

The pair walked quickly and quietly towards Hotch's office, neither looking towards the bullpen, but feeling both Reid and Morgan's eyes on them as they knocked on the unit chief's door.

"Come in," Hotch called from where he was sitting behind his desk.

"Hi," Emily greeted as she led the way into the office, JJ following close behind. "We were hoping we could talk to you. Is now a bad time?"

"No now's fine, please sit," Hotch replied, gesturing towards the two chairs in front of the desk. "Is everything okay?" He asked once the women were seated.

"Yeah everything's fine," JJ replied, sitting on her hand in order to resist reaching out for Emily's hand. "There's something we need to tell you though."

"What's going on?" Hotch asked, looking from one agent to the next.

"Emily and I…welll…" JJ began, searching for the right words.

"We're dating," Emily stated, straight to the point, surprising JJ, who looked at the brunette in shock. "It just sort of happened, and it's only been a few days, but we want to give this a serious shot. Which is why we're coming to you now."

"We know there are rules against this," JJ said, finding her voice. "And we understand that you have to do your job, but we just wanted you to know."

At first Hotch didn't respond, still watching both his agents as he considered his options, both women looking worried.

"You're right there are rules," Hotch finally said. "However I know the two of you. And I know how serious you both take your jobs, which is why I'm going to say this. As long as you're able to keep things professional out in the field, I see no reason why this needs to change anything."

"Really?" JJ asked, surprised.

"Really," Hotch replied with an uncharacteristic smile on his face. "And let me just say, it's about time."

"It's about….what?" Emily asked confused.

"Rossi and I have been wondering when you two were finally gonna figure it out," Hotch explained, trying not to laugh at the surprise written all over both women's faces. "We thought Alex might bring you two closer together."

"Why does it seem like everyone else knew we should be together before we did?" Emily said, shaking her head with a laugh.

"Probably because they did," Hotch replied matter of factly.

"We're hoping to tell the rest of the team today," JJ said. "Which shouldn't be difficult since apparently everyone already knows."

"Well Reid might be surprised," Hotch joked. "You can let them know after our meeting."

"Thanks Hotch," JJ said, standing.

"Yes, thank you," Emily said, getting up to follow JJ out of the office.

"You're welcome," Hotch smiled. "And ladies? Congratulations."

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

"Emily anything pressing in your files?" Hotch asked towards the end of the team's meeting that morning.

"I have a case in Arizona that seems really familiar but I can't quite put my finger on it," Emily explained. "I was hoping Reid might be able to take a look at it."

"Of course," Reid agreed, taking the file from Emily's hands.

"JJ has anything come across your desk?" Hotch then asked, turning his attention to the media liaison.

"I had a detective contact me about a couple murders in Florida," JJ began. "I read it over and it didn't really strike me as a serial. The victims were similar but the M.O's were completely different. I handed it over to Morgan this morning and he agreed."

"Yeah it doesn't seem like the same guy at all," Morgan agreed. "Could become a problem if they both kill again though."

"JJ contact the detective and have him keep and eye on missing persons that fit the victomology. Garcia can do a search as well. Tell him what we think and have him keep us informed of any other murders."

"Yes sir," JJ replied, making a note in her files.

"Alright anything else?" Hotch asked, which was met with silence. "Alright before we disperse there's something JJ and Prentiss would like to discuss with us."

Everyone's attention turned towards Emily and JJ, who were sitting together looking slightly nervous, neither woman noticing the knowing looks on all the agents' faces.

"JJ and I have some news that we'd like to share with you," Emily began, looking towards the blonde.

"Emily and I are dating," JJ finished for the brunette, looking up to see all the profilers watching the pair happily. "And apparently none of you are even a little bit surprised by this," she laughed.

"I am SO happy!" Garcia squealed, standing up and coming around the table to engulf both women in a hug. "This is so great!"

"Congratulations, bellas," Rossi said, sending a wink towards the women.

Morgan also stood, patting Emily on the back. "Took you long enough Princess."

"Yeah, yeah," Emily laughed. "We know," she said turning towards the youngest profiler who was hugging JJ. "Reid you don't seem all that surprised either."

"Given the fact that JJ allows you to call her Jennifer, but yells at anyone else who tries, I kind of figured there was more going on than you let on," Reid explained. "Plus it's hard not to notice the looks."

"Kid has a point," Morgan agreed.

"Apparently we were the only blind one's Em," JJ laughed, moving to the brunette and squeezing her hand.

"Oh look at you two!" Garcia gushed. "You're absolutely adorable. This calls for a celebration!"

"I agree," Rossi said.

"How about everyone comes over tomorrow night and we can celebrate," Emily suggested.

"Perfect! I'll bring the games!" Garcia replied happily before once again pulling her friends in for a hug.

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

**"**Hello?" Alex answered her phone later that day.

"Hey kid," Emily greeted, from the car on her way home from work. "You at Zoey's?"

"Yeah," Alex replied. "I was going to come home for a bit, but I figured you and JJ had plans so I just came straight here. Is that okay?"

"Of course," Emily said. "Although we wouldn't have minded seeing you."

"So you do have plans then?" Alex asked. "Big date?"

"I'm just going to make her dinner and then we'll probably just watch a movie or something," Emily replied. JJ was currently following the brunette home since she didn't want to leave her car parked at work all weekend. The pair had decided to have their date night at Emily's rather then going out, both preferring the more intimate atmosphere.

"I'll be sure to call before I come home tomorrow then," Alex laughed.

"Ha Ha," Emily said, rolling her eyes despite the fact that the teen couldn't see her. "So we told the team about us today."

"And?"

"And they're coming over tomorrow night to celebrate," Emily explained, the smile evident in her voice.

"So neither of you have to leave your job?" Alex asked.

"Nope."

"That's great!" Alex replied happily.

"I know. We were both thrilled," Emily said. "And it turns out the team wasn't all that surprised by the news anyways."

"Well did you really think they would be?" Alex asked, laughing.

"Well we at least thought Reid would have been, but even he knew," Emily explained.

"Well he is a profiler," Alex replied.

"This is true," Emily agreed. "Anyways I just wanted to check in with you, and let you know about tomorrow night. I was thinking you could invite the girls over as well. Garcia said she was bringing games."

"Oh okay," Alex replied. "Zoey's going to her cousin's tomorrow and Olivia has this thing with her dad that's apparently some big tradition, but I'm sure Spencer would come. Her parents are out of town anyways."

"Alright well tell her she's welcome to stay the night."

"Awesome," Alex replied. "Well I hope you and JJ have a good night."

"Thanks," Emily replied. "You have fun, and I'll see you tomorrow. Love you."

"Love you too."

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

Later that night Emily and JJ sat in the family room, having just enjoyed a nice dinner prepared by Emily, enjoying a glass of wine as music played softly in the background.

"This is nice," JJ said, taking a sip of her wine. "And dinner was wonderful Em, thank you," she continued, leaning forward to place a soft kiss on the brunette's lips.

"My pleasure," Emily smiled. "I'm glad you liked it. I thought about taking you out, but I thought this would be nicer."

"It's perfect," JJ replied with a smile, intertwining her free hand with the other woman's. "You know it's crazy how right this feels."

"I know what you mean," Emily said, placing a kiss on the back of the blonde's hand. "I'm glad we finally figured this out," she laughed.

"Me too," JJ smiled. "So I believe I was promised a cheesy, romantic movie."

"And you shall have it," Emily said, releasing JJ's hand to grab the remote, turning off the music and switching on the DVD she had put in the player earlier that night.

Emily took another sip of her wine, sitting back in the couch as The Notebook started, putting an arm around JJ, who curled in close to the brunette.

"I love this movie," JJ whispered, placing a kiss under Emily's chin.

"I know," Emily smiled, having had watched the movie with the blonde many times before.

The pair let their attention drift to the movie, remaining cuddled up as Emily ran her hand absentmindedly through blonde hair. It wasn't until about halfway through the movie that JJ looked up, a smile spreading across her face before she placed a rather passionate kiss on Emily's lips. When she broke away, there was still a great big smile on her face.

"What was that for?" Emily asked, JJ's happiness putting a smile on her own face.

"Just because," JJ replied. "This is pretty perfect."

"It is, isn't it?" Emily said, leaning forward to kiss the blonde quickly. "I could definitely get used to this," she said before placing a hand behind JJ's head, pulling her in to meet her lips.

JJ deepened the kiss, pulling Emily with her as she lay back on the couch, allowing the brunette to cover her body with her own.

"We're going to miss the movie," Emily said, pulling back a little breathlessly.

"I so don't care," JJ replied before pulling Emily back into a kiss.

**CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM-CM**

"Emily?" Alex called out when she entered the condo late the next afternoon with Spencer.

"Hey," Emily replied from around the corner where she was getting a glass of water in the kitchen. "How was your night?" She asked as she pulled the teen into a hug.

"It was a lot of fun," Alex said, returning the taller woman's hug with a smile.

"Hi Spencer," Emily greeted. "How did you guys get home? I would have picked you up."

"Zoey's mom brought us to my house so I could get some more of my things," Spencer explained. "My sister brought us here since she was going to her friends. Thanks for having me by the way," Spencer said politely.

"Of course," Emily smiled. "We're glad you could come."

"Hey you're back," JJ called as she came down the stairs and saw that Alex had returned.

"Hey," Alex laughed as JJ pulled the teen into a big hug. "Did you miss me?"

"Of course," JJ replied as she released the teen. "Hanging out with Emily's fine for a while but she doesn't quite have your witty personality."

"Hey," Emily said, giving the blonde a dirty look.

Alex laughed. "Well you're going to have to manage without my witty personality for a little bit longer because we have a lot of homework," the teen explained, pointing to herself and Spencer. "What time is the team coming?"

"Probably about 8pm," Emily replied. "We were going to get Chinese for dinner beforehand. You guys go upstairs and get some work done and I'll call you when it's time for dinner."

"Sounds good," Alex said before leading Spencer upstairs.

The rest of the day went by quickly, Alex and Spencer remaining in Alex's room where they completed a good portion of their homework before joining Emily and JJ downstairs for dinner.

Garcia was the first to arrive, having refused to drive with Morgan so that she could come half an hour early. The blonde was even bubblier than usual as she gushed about Emily and JJ's new romance.

It wasn't until Emily went to answer the door and JJ went to collect snacks in the kitchen that Garcia sidled up to Alex on the couch.

"So you must be happy," Garcia said happily.

"Obviously," Alex replied, checking over her shoulder to make that both woman were still occupied. "I don't really know if we had anything to do with it but I would say we make a great team Penelope Garcia."

"You got that right dumpling," Garcia replied, as Spencer laughed, having heard about the pair's plan from Alex. "You by the way are just gorgeous," Garcia said turning to Spencer.

"Oh thank you," Spencer replied sounding surprised but laughing by the sudden topic change.

The rest of the team trickled in, receiving drinks in the kitchen from JJ before gathering in the family room, all chatting amongst each other. Hotch and Haley were the last to arrive, coming over to greet Alex who had been talking with Rossi.

"No Jack tonight?" Alex asked after introducing the pair to Spencer.

"No, he's with my sister tonight," Haley replied. "She thought we could use the night off."

"Well that's cool," Alex replied. "I'm not sure I'm ready for what Garcia has planned."

"No one's ever prepared for Garcia," Hotch joked.

"I heard that boss man," Garcia said, going to grab her bag from where she dropped it by the door. "Alright everyone needs to get into the living room so the fun can begin."

"I'm not sure our definition of fun is the same," Rossi said, reluctantly taking a seat on the couch next to Reid.

"Yeah I'm a little worried," Reid agreed.

"Hush you two, you will have fun," Garcia said, coming in with a variety of board games in her arms. "I brought choices but I think we should play Cranium."

"Oh yeah I love that game," Spencer agreed, from where she was standing with Alex.

"Everyone needs a partner then," Garcia explained.

"I call Alex," JJ said, grabbing the teen by the waist and pulling her down onto the couch with her.

"Wow, ditched by my girlfriend and my kid," Emily said, sticking her tongue out at the pair who were laughing. "Spencer Hastings I hope you're ready to kick some serious butt," she said taking the other teen by the hand and sitting down on the floor.

"We've got this," Spencer replied confidently.

"Oh it's on," Alex said, whispering something to JJ who nodded in agreement.

Hotch and Haley were obviously paired, while Morgan grabbed Garcia, leaving Reid and Rossi together, neither anxious to play, but knowing better than to argue with Garcia.

The game got loud rather quickly, everyone laughing and talking loudly, enjoying seeing Reid look uncomfortable doing impersonations and impressed with Hotch's charade abilities. Emily and Spencer took an early lead, but it wasn't long before JJ and Alex caught up, the two pairs getting rather competitive.

"Alright it's a team charade, everyone plays," Garcia explained late in the game. "If Alex and JJ get it they win."

"Alright kid we've got this," JJ said, focusing her attention on the teen standing in front of her who was ready to act out the card that was being passed to one member of each team.

"Alright, ready, set, go," Garcia shouted turning the timer over.

Reid, Spencer, Garcia, Haley and Alex all began acting out the card, their teammates looking at them like they were crazy as they all began shaking their legs in varying ways. JJ watched as Alex put her fingers close together, indicating that something was small, then made it look like something was crawling on her leg, which she then began shaking.

"Ants in your pants!" JJ shouted.

"THAT'S IT!" Alex yelled, throwing her arms up in celebration as JJ jumped up, engulfing her in a hug, briefly lifting the teen off the ground.

The pair continued to celebrate, much to everyone's amusement as both females fell onto the couch beside Rossi, laughing happily.

"I hope you realize you're dating a child," Garcia said to Emily, looking at JJ who wasn't even paying attention.

"Oh yeah, I know," Emily said, shaking her head but smiling at the sight of JJ and Alex so happy.

"Don't be jealous," Alex said, smiling as JJ kept one arm wrapped around her.

"We'll get them next time Spence," Emily said, ignoring Alex and putting her arm around her daughter's friend.

"Alright Pictionary next, but everyone has to change partners," Garcia instructed.

"They're forcing us apart," Alex said to JJ, feigning a pout as she considered her options. "Haley?" She asked as she watched Spencer get pulled next to Garcia, the other teen looking a little frightened.

"Sure," Haley agreed, while Hotch sat with Rossi, Morgan with Reid and JJ with Emily.

The group played on well into the night, before one by one they began to disperse, leaving Spencer, Alex, Emily and JJ on their own, the condo suddenly quiet. The two teens were sprawled out on the couch half asleep while JJ and Emily sat on the smaller sofa, looking around at the mess that was the family room.

"Why don't you two head to bed," Emily called out, seeing that Alex's eyes were beginning to drift shut.

"Yeah, okay," Alex yawned, poking Spencer in the ribs before getting up off the couch. The teen walked sleepily towards Emily, holding her arms out, waiting for a hug.

Emily laughed, standing up and embracing the younger brunette. "Night sweetheart," she said, placing a kiss on the top of Alex's head. "Love you."

"Love you too," Alex replied before moving over to JJ.

Emily pulled Spencer into a hug, wishing her a goodnight, and watching while Alex leaned over to hug JJ.

"Night JJ," Alex said sleepily. "Love you."

"Love you too Lex," JJ replied a smile on her face. "Night Spencer," she said over Alex's shoulder.

"Night," Spencer replied before following Alex towards the stairs, both teen's looking like they were sleepwalking.

"Can we make breakfast together tomorrow?" Alex asked from the stairs, looking at JJ.

"Sure," JJ smiled, as Alex continued on up the stairs.

Emily smiled at the blonde as she sat back down beside her, pulling her in for a kiss that was short, but sweet.

"So I guess you're staying the night then huh?" Emily joked, having figured that JJ would stay, but unsure of how she felt about spending the night when Alex was home.

"It would appear so," JJ laughed, feeling rather relieved that Alex was so comfortable with having her around. "I had a lot of fun tonight."

"Me too," Emily agreed, placing a kiss on JJ's cheek. "But what do you say we get to bed? I want to cuddle with my girlfriend tonight," she said, taking the blonde's hand and pulling her up off the couch.

The pair made their way upstairs hand in hand, both hoping for many more nights just like this one; filled with love, laughter, happiness, and most importantly: family.


End file.
